


Bond's New Flatmate

by LazarusBond



Category: James Bond (Craig movies), James Bond (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Humor, Developed Story, Eventual Romance, F/M, Flatmate - Freeform, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Crack, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Humor, James Bond Can Cook, James Bond Has Issues, London, Plot, Q Branch, Q Has a Cat, Romance, Spy - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2020-03-01 02:02:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 46,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18790765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LazarusBond/pseuds/LazarusBond
Summary: You have been Bond’s flatmate for a few months and without exception, this has been one of Bond’s biggest challenges yet. Including working on the field! Having to live with you is new territory at times, considering your line of work and how much chaos you can cause indeed. But that is all thrown out the window when Bond discovers an even worse secret about you that leaves him stunned…





	1. "Accidents Happen"

**Author's Note:**

> A/N; Here it is! Something new I decided to give a try a while ago. It might become something? Who knows? Also excuse the terrible typos and the weird diversions this plot may turn to. I hope you all enjoy this!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Living with James Bond isn't easy, however the 00 agent can say the same thing about you. When you two are out getting some fresh air, he faces a revelation that leaves him dumbfounded...

Chelsea. One of the most expensive areas in all of the UK and now, you were living in it? How? You don’t even know it all happened so suddenly. With your line of work being in forensics, and being one of Bill Tanner’s closest friends he couldn’t help but recommend for you to work within the MI6, after all, you were very talented - scarily talented.

The only thing that had stopped you was the fact that with your talent, came a lot of dangerous experiments in which you knew that no one would ever handle and with that came pride. You didn’t see yourself working for those who were keeping the country safe, you’d rather see yourself being self-employed, which you were. On the tour, you had bumped into Bond who was very fond of your devious antics throughout, swiping whatever samples you could from one of the developmental workshops as well as how your level of intelligence somehow matched his. You told him that you had just moved into London and you were planning on renting a flat and now here you were. Somehow, he volunteered for you to stay in his flat in Chelsea, that’s right. That expensive area in London that only really wealthy people could afford and now Bond volunteered for you to stay with him, considering he would be out a lot and would need someone to keep the flat alive anyway while he was gone. All it took was a few weeks for you to settle down and you did, he let you work on experiments now and again - well when it was meant by he let you work on experiments what was really meant by that is that whenever he was out working, which was quite a lot, you would make use of most of the kitchen or the front room to work on an experiment. And most of them turned out - great. When the word ‘most’ is used, its mainly by the fact that on three separate occasions, in the space of two weeks, you had almost set the flat on fire and there have been some ‘minor’ accidents leading to a lot of broken items or the entire flat being upside down. Bond was surprisingly tolerant with you though, it was almost as though you had this game of cat and mouse whenever he was around to entertain yourself and wasn’t this pleasantly fun for the both of you?

Today however, it was slightly different. You were up early, as usual, but made a lot of racket within the first five minutes. Bond couldn’t take it today after a rough night’s sleep so he dragged himself out of bed, got himself freshened up and ready for work to finding you hanging upside down on the couch with a blank piece of paper with ink stains on it. The entire flat had equipment and papers clustered everywhere, but there you were, calm and quiet, almost too quiet, in just your robe. “When I woke up this morning to the unpleasant sound of clanging and banging I didn't expect this was going to be a particular good morning for me. But now seeing  you being in that position, I didn’t have that in mind considering you’re more concerned with turning the flat upside down rather than changing. Not that it bothers me at all.” Bond smirked leaning against the door frame.  
“Don’t stare too long - and I don’t mean at the mess around you.” You said, without looking at Bond. You were so focused on the piece of paper that you just didn’t have time to look back at him. 

“How can it not work?! I’ve tried it all last night and there’s still nothing coming out of this! I know he did it! I just know he did!”  
James knew exactly what you were talking about, he sighed, rolling his eyes and just continued to stare at the most intriguing part of the room. You. “You’re still talking about that experiment again, for Christ's sake.”  
“You know I’m right! I know I’m right! If something didn’t trigger this explosion then someone did according to the bomb reacting to certain footprints or DNA structures of some sort! It’s just nothing is coming out of this bloody piece of paper!”  
You continued to babble on as James simply stood there, blocking out the sounds of your complaining. He eventually approached you and snatched the paper out of your hand when you impulsively jumped and sat up straight. “James! Give that back!”  
“Y/N. You’re staring at a piece of paper with ink on it. You’ve been doing that all morning and you haven’t been out all week. Go in and get changed. We’re going out.” You sat, folding your arms and glaring at him.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

And now here you were. Inside James’ car, going out somewhere with Bond to keep you ‘alive’ as he thought. He was right. You hadn’t left the flat in almost a week and now breathing that fresh air felt good again, though you were too prideful to admit that. During the journey, you soaked in the beautiful London scenery. You never really had time to stop and stare at everything around you as you had been oh so occupied. The sky was the blue not everyone had hoped for, more darker and gloomier and as for the whether? Well that didn’t help either with it’s constant light rain pattering against the car window. Yet this all made the bright lights of red, oranges, yellows, even more so beautiful. You took in the stunning sight of Big Ben and The Westminster Bridge on your way through London and now you were on Vauxhall bridge, you had the slightest idea where exactly you were going but James simply past the SIS building so now you were left unsure. Bond headed into more isolated roads and now towards a narrow path in the middle of a dark tunnel.

Bond jumped out with you and began walking, “Where are we going?”  
“I’m just going to pick up a few things, thought you’d keep yourself entertained and in sight while I’m at it.”  
“I’m not a child you know.” You argued back, walking with him as he flickered on his torch.

“You have the mind of one sometimes.” He mumbled. You were in a new territory. Old walls, the sounds of people were non existent, footsteps echoing around this place, it wasn’t a tunnel. You were inside a bunker. Bond eventually opened the door at the end and you were now revealed to your ideal environment. A huge workshop with gadgets and experiments of all sorts, with only a few people in lab coats walking around testing these experiments. “Welcome to Q branch.” He smiled, allowing you to step in first.

So there you two were, looking at all these gadgets, watching people take on experiments, creating and working on new technology, the likes of which you had never seen before. Tanner had never shown you this on the tour when persuading you to work on forensics within the MI6. You had wondered why because this was all remarkable.

“Hey, look at this.” Bond caught your attention as he stood with a new sniper, aiming it towards one of the target stands at the other end of the room. Just as he raised it away from the desk, he found it to be instantly snatched out of his hands by Q.

“Not today 007. I have had enough of your antics.” He was completely oblivious to your presence and you were towards his as Q headed back to his desk.

Bond followed him and turned around to you, “Are you coming or not?”  
You eventually followed, mesmerized just by the sight of this workshop and once you stopped in your tracks, finally reaching Bond, the two were in a conversation.

“What are you doing here 007?”

He turned to his pocket and handed Q a letter, in which he had to set up the following required gadgets along with other bits and pieces for Bond’s next mission.

“I’ll see what I can do…” He mumbled, reading through the letter. “Oh and by the way this is Y/N Y/L/N, she’s just checking out the workshop on Tanner’s request.”

Bond was a good liar, to a certain extent that even Q managed to believe it. But at that moment, his head shot up and looked at you, a familiar face from the past. You instantly looked back and your eyes bulged instantly, “Y/N - I mean Y/N.” He had cleared his throat, looking at you with a smile. This was the first time Q gave a genuine smile and Bond was confused but interested by this new before.

“I guess I should call you Q now considering we’re in a working environment.” You both smirked at each other for a moment of silence before Q spoke.

“I take it Oxford didn't have what you wanted…”  
“I got bored of what they had to offer.” You two were talking to each other in a friendly yet stern tone, which was all to confusing to take seriously. “I knew you’d get bored eventually.”

He chuckled lightly then directed his eyes to your hand. “You don’t wear it anymore?”  
“Sometimes. Only to push others away.”  
“It works?”  
“Every time.” You smirked. “What about you? Do you wear yours?”  
“Sometimes.” Q winked, with another smirk back.  “You know it is supposed to work because we are genuinely stuck in this predicament right?”  
You nodded, letting out a humorous sigh, “I know. I’ve come to terms with that.”  
“So what are you doing here in London? I’d expect this to be the last place you’d want to go.” He picked up his cup of tea and began sipping it slowly, awaiting for your answer.  
“I’ve been living here for a while. With James…” That was when he choked and almost spat out his tea almost immediately.

“Oh dear lord...He hasn’t tried to?”  
“No.”  
“Excuse me. I’m still here.” Bond interrupted quickly to grasp your attention, “I must’ve missed something. What is going on? And how do you two know each other?”  
The two of you froze, looking at each other for a moment, expecting one of you two to answer but neither of you had said anything.

“Are you going to tell him?” You asked. “You’ve clearly known him longer than I have.”  
“No. This is your doing. You tell him.” He scoffed, dropping the tea on the table.  
“My doing?! That is wrong on so many levels. You know it takes two to tango.” You hissed back.  
“You’re the one living with him.” He retorted.

  
As the mature one of the pair, you turned to Bond and realised you had to tell him yourself now.

“Fine.” You sighed rolling your eyes, “Back when I lived in Oxford, before Q was transferred to work in London for the MI6, we were good friends for years. Such good friends that we ended up getting married. That’s right, he’s my dearest distant husband…” You said in a sour tone in your voice, glaring at Q. Bond didn’t know how to process this, he didn’t know whether to smile or whether to be disturbed by the fact that Q actually had a wife.

“Wait. What?”  
“We’re still married. There has been no divorce because we were too lazy to go through all of those complications.” You told Bond clearly, trying to grasp his full attention.  
“Look, we were young, worked on impulse,” Q looked at you with a wink then turned back to a more disgusted James, “And it was purely an experiment to see how long we’d last. Six years later and without having to see each other for four of them and we’ve lasted an unbelievable amount of time. Don’t you think Y/N?”  
“Oh yes indeed. I think the experiment still is a success, just happens to be that I didn’t think I’d ever come across you again.”  
“Y/N don’t you consider this marriage accidental?” Q asked, awaiting the answer he wanted to hear.  
“...” You thought about it, before telling him the truth. “Yes.”  
Q finally gave a relieved sigh and leaned against the desk with a smile, “Oh thank god. I thought it was that too.”

A lot of the journey home, Bond was still baffled by his recent discovery that you were married to Q. Though he dropped a few questions now and again and eventually when you two were alone in the car together, all the questions were dropped. You were on your phone, typing away, not that you were a fan of texting people anyone knew that, while Bond continued to drive back.  
“So you and Q were…?”  
“Yes.” You responded still typing.  
“Does that mean you two -?”  
“Yes.” You lengthened the word proudly to leave him interested and confused.  
“Was he - ?”  
“Very.” You smirked, eventually typing faster.  
“That isn’t remotely possible.”  
“Well it was, believe me.” She turned to him with a wink and a proud smirk, then continued to type on her phone. There was no way that Q was surely that impressive, was he? Dear lord was this a disaster as Bond had now discovered that he was living with Q’s current estranged, wife, who was also beautiful, captivating and definitely too intelligent by all means.


	2. Bitterness and Saltiness...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still in absolute disbelief of the secret recently discovered about his flatmate, Bond tries his best to subtly figure out what you’re really all about by inquiring on the spot. But his plan backfires the more he asks about you...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At a time where the plot started to make a little sense...But revisiting some old chapters is a lot of fun! Also the reader is hella sassy, I could not remember making her like this at all! I hope you enjoy!

“Six years. You’ve been married - to Q - for six whole years?” James still whispered in disbelief as you handed him his regular morning cup of tea. Actually, you wouldn’t usually do this considering he didn’t trust your antics and simply by the fact that you just couldn’t be bothered to do so but today was different. You had to give him something to silence him - or burn his tongue so he can at least stop himself talking about it. You also had thought that a good cup of tea would maybe just help James adjust to the scenario and quieten down. It had been almost a week since he found out you were married and he strangely just was never able to get over it. It was on the back of his mind, and every time he approached you he’d ask something ridiculous before he’d leave for work, like;  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
“You had a ceremony? In front of people?”  
“It’s on the register, legally that you two are married. Similar to the way he adopted cats, legally. That type of legal.”  
“Did you two live together? That must’ve been odd. You don’t even like talking to people, let alone living with them, besides me.”  
“Who did you have to fight to steal the money for the rings? I understand Q, he isn’t the type to fight and steal - maybe you murdered someone? Is that what you did? Because that would make a lot more sense!”  
“He can’t have been that good, I mean come on, it’s Q.” He huffed in disbelief.  
What didn’t help was your response, you sat there beside your chemistry set and mumbled back to him without paying attention to what exactly you had said, “Q. Not what I called him in the sheets. Happened to be something a lot longer I suppose.” You smirked triumphantly, looking into the microscope, to Bond’s disgust.   
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Those were only a few of the many questions that Bond had in mind, thank goodness they were all cut short by the fact that he had to go to work and quite frankly, you were unable to pay attention to him. Yet today was his day off, and today was the day he was prepared to find out more about his flatmate, who hardly ever spoke about herself much. He thought he knew you - now he had to think again.   
“Yes, I’ve been married for six years, for the hundredth time.” You said, heading towards the chemistry set table so you could continue on whatever experiment it was you were working on now. You needed to concentrate considering it involved potassium and that was never good whenever it had been used incorrectly. Bond looked at his cup of tea then at you, thinking you weren’t aware that his eyes weren’t on you. “No I did not poison your tea. It’s a way of getting you to keep quiet. All your questions are giving me a headache quite frankly.” You muttered to him as you took a sip from your cup. Bond nodded and continued to drink his tea, while he watched you working on your experiment. ‘How could a woman so - how could she be married to someone like Q?’ He thought.

In all honestly, he admired the way you gracefully moved around the table, there was just something about the way you moved that made him glad that Q distanced himself from you. But that he would never admit. 1, because of his pride and 2, because he was just not going to admit that - no way. Not to someone like you. Eventually after a short while of silence, Bond couldn’t help himself but mutter, “But still. It’s Q - and six years. Something must’ve inevitably gone wrong within those six years.” He huffed.  
You froze, smiling and looked over to him, “You can’t believe someone has had a relationship lasting longer than the flings with different women, in your entire life, combined?”  
“Ouch.” He uttered, “There’s that. But I just can’t believe you, out of all people, could even get into a serious relationship with that attitude.”  
“Hm. I don’t remember putting salt or lemon in your tea, someone's feeling quite salty and bitter. Jealousy, it can ruin you in many ways Mr Bond.”  
“Please. Jealous?” He scoffed, “Definitely when it comes to someone like you.” He then retorted, taking a long sip of his tea and a triumphant smirk.

“Guess you’re into people like him. Lean, small, annoying.” James muttered, but this time you heard him.  
“No. I don’t have a type. More like I like my men giving me something to hold onto.” You teased in a joking manner, leaving him stunned. Now you had the upper hand in this game. Bond couldn’t process how to react at the moment, mainly because of the tone you had said it to him in. It wasn’t seductive, nor was it in a joking manner, it was difficult to process.

He later asked, once he was relaxed and comfortable with his hot cup of tea, “So what was it like? Being married to someone like Q?”  
“The same as being married to anyone.” You purposely had given him a short answer, one being that so you could continue but also so you could tease James a little. You knew something was brewing whenever he asked five hundred questions about your marriage to Q, that he was clearly more than just fazed by the news. Maybe you were finally going to have the upper hand in this game, right?  
“Very funny. That’s not a good enough answer, Y/N.” Bond sighed annoyed, and awaiting a proper answer to come from you.  
“Was I being funny though?” You stretched your jaw and lips, squinting at James in a teasing manner just to annoy him even further. James didn’t do anything though, he just glared at you irritated and rolled his eyes. “You really do want to know? Isn’t that sweet? Alright.” You stopped in your tracks, let your hand rest on the table and spoke finally, “Being married to Q at the age that I was, happened to be one of the best mistakes I had ever made. Now try and see which word I’d prefer to use first, ‘best’ or ‘mistake.’ We were just like any other couple, except at it like newlyweds for two years straight.” You winked at him with a small smirk to his look of disgust before continuing, “He’d shower me with gifts all the time, always take me to these exotic, monumental places, believe it or not, he was more open about the relationship than I was to even begin with. He was gentle at times but knew when he had to be - you know - a little rough around the edges.”  

Bond froze, horrified with what you had just said. He was good at hiding it but dammit, was that something unpleasant to his ears. The more you mentioned about how good Q was in bed, the more of this itchy feeling he had in his gut. “You’re lying. He couldn’t have been that good. Maybe he was just your first and you never know until you’ve had a little something from another that you know who’s better at what.”  
“And how would you know that? I’m not an easy woman to impress, with very high standards.” You tried not to chuckle, sitting down soon enough and staring into a magnifying glass. Bond didn’t know how to take that, he smirked with a little “Hmm.” response then took a long slurp of his tea, slightly bitter in a sense. “High standards my foot.” He mumbled deeply under his breath, to a the extent where you couldn’t even hear him at all.   
“Okay, so what went wrong?” He inquired.  
“Nothing. We just wanted to take different paths that’s all. He moved to London, I stayed in Oxford. We stopped talking after a while, because we were just too busy with our lives. But legally we’re stuck with each other and trapped because we can’t be bothered to get a divorce. And before you ask, can’t be bothered meaning unwilling to pay such amount of money just to split from each other. That’s all. And that is why it was a mistake. I didn’t think the experiment would have - this many complications.”  
“But it’s marriage. Of course it’s going to have complications, it’s not meant to be an experiment.” James looked at you in ridiculed manner and rolled his eyes.  
“Really?” You moved from your current task to glare over at him, raising an eyebrow, “Don’t start telling me about marriages when - never mind.”  
“What?”  
“Nothing. It’s nothing.” You turned back to your work, blanking him at this point.  
“Y/N. What were you going to say? I want to hear this.” His attention was on you, you could sense it and responded, “I’m no longer talking about this subject.” You managed to stop yourself before you could really get to him. You were really good at that, James knew about that definitely and this time, surprisingly you knew you boundaries, knowing what had happened to him before. How? You simply asked Q for his MI6 file, who said old spouses couldn’t help each other on spying on a common acquaintance? You found more than you even needed to know and that’s how you knew how to stop yourself before he probably would have done something he couldn’t control either. Death? Who knows? You’re both capable of doing something as far as that.After a short moment of silence, a thought popped into his mind. “I have one last question.”  
“What?” You rolled your eyes in the end, lighting the bunsen burner.  
“If it’s been four years since you’ve seen Q, doesn’t that mean it’s been four years since you’ve been impressed?” Bond smirked, looking over towards you for an answer.  
You now chuckled aloud and shook your head, “Oh, James. Bless your poor little mind. Of course not. And besides, what I’ve been doing and whomever impresses me is most definitely none of your business.” You looked up at him with a final wink before you finished off your experiment.


	3. Wrap it up! (One off Alternative Chapter!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bond makes an absolutely shocking discovery that changes his life forever and the reader isn’t much help when she finds out what happens too...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! So this is not seen as a chapter on my Tumblr page (MrDanielBond) There is a reason why - it's a pretty whacky chapter! However, I remember sharing this with a friend a while ago in this order as a little one off from the plot, so I thought I'd put this in as one of the early adventures of Bond and the reader! You can skip this if you want, but if you want more of the reader's sass, then this is the place to stay! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

“Morning.” You groaned sat at the dining table sipping your coffee. “James. You have to stop bringing women here by the way. You have more money than I do. Get a hotel room or something. I’m sick of waking up to hearing whatever is going on inside your room. Makes me sick.”  
“I’m meeting a woman later tonight so don’t wait up.”

Being the antisocial you were, yet again you weren’t paying attention to Bond once again. Instead you were sat at your laptop and heard him mumble something about a female colleague at work and that was the last of him you decided to listen to. You were busy working when you heard noises coming out of Bond’s room...unpleasant noises. Not again. You thought, rolling your eyes. These weren’t just any noises, the giggling, the shuffling, the moans. You became disgusted and left the flat for a while to work at the office. 

Tanner had a few odd jobs in store for you gladly, as the company you worked for had a direct link to the MI6, so you helped him travel around London, to different crime scenes collecting evidence that you needed to work on. Once you two headed back to the lab, Tanner casually leaned against the desk, watching you work.  
“So Y/N, what brings you here this late?” Tanner asked.  
“I should be asking you the same question. Don’t you think it’s a bit late for the Chief of Staff of the MI6 to be working with a forensic investigator at this time of the night?”  
“But my job is to look out for the late night incidents. What’s your excuse?”  
You closed the small magnifying glass in your hand and turned to Tanner, “If you really want to know, this is the third time this week Bond has had company and I haven’t been able to work. And it’s only Wednesday. I’m not ready to deal with the next four days this week.”  
“Really?”  
You nodded.  
“That’s unpleasant.” He said with distaste in his mouth.  
“I know it is, I didn’t sign up for that when I said I was going to be James’ flatmate.”   
Q entered the room.  
“What’s going on? Y/N, you didn’t tell me you were working late.” He laughed nervously.  
“I’m not.” You responded, looking closely at the substance on the glass.  
Tanner filled in for you to answer the question, “Bond’s been at it again and it’s Wednesday. Third time this week and Y/N can’t sleep.”  
Q squeezed his lips and raised his eyebrows, “That is unpleasant.”  
“Exactly what I said.” Tanner chuckled, shaking his head.   
“I guess he’s gone back to his old dirty dog ways.”  
“THAT’S DISGUSTING.” You finally said after them and tried hard not to raise your voice and tipped your cup of coffee in the sink. After hearing Q talk about Bond that way, you were not prepared to go back to the flat at all.  
“So is he?” Q asked, looking at you.  
“Is he what?” You asked, turning from your microscope.  
“Is he a dirty dog?” He asked humorously. You’d think after not seeing your husband the past few years that he’d change and act slightly less immature, but in fact he was enjoying this more than anyone else in the room. You rolled your eyes and cringed at his question. Two could play at that game though. You thought. It’s just you couldn’t bring yourself to talk about it. You just couldn’t do it without thinking about the noises that came out of that room. You’d rather not actually.   
“Think of it this way. I heard a lot of shuffling and grunting and growling from your colleague and I know that it’s loud enough to wake up the neighbours downstairs. I also unfortunately know the names of the women he’s brought in these past few days and trust me, I no longer like the name (Insert name you don’t like) anymore.” 

Q tried not to laugh, but you were being serious, this was disgusting and seriously affecting your sleep.  
“You are aware that Bond could seriously harm himself if he keeps going on like this.” He remarked.  
“Dear lord, that would be remarkably hilarious, wouldn’t it? James Bond, Agent 007, the man who overcame death, shot off a bridge, almost drowned underwater, kidnapped by a group of terrorists suddenly in great danger because of his high libido and as a result gets an STD. Now I think that’s the only thing that could really break Bond.” Q chuckles to himself sipping his tea. 

You ignored Q for the next hour working and eventually he did feel bad because you were actually sleep deprived. “Y/N?”  
You ignored him.  
“Y/N. If you’d like somewhere to sleep in, my flat is always open.”  
“I’m allergic to cats, remember?”  
“Alright, let me help you. I don’t like it when you’re annoyed with me like this.” He smiled, trying to convince you to look his direction. “Or tired, I don’t want you accidentally breaking any of the equipment here.”

Hours later, you returned back to the flat at 4.30am. Bond was awake pouring himself a cup of coffee in just his dark blue robe, wrapped tightly around his body. You were exhausted and all you wanted to do was go to your room and soak up in the warmth of your mountain of a blanket and rest your head on your puffy pillow. You entered the room and dropped your bag on the couch cautiously looking around when you find James walking into the front room smirking proudly.  
“Tired?” He asked, handing you his cup of coffee.  
You pulled a face and shook your head, “If you think I am going to just accept this coffee then you must be out of your mind. Don’t know where your hand has been and I don’t want to know.” You said sternly, backing away from Bond.   
He frowned slightly, looking at the cup then smiled back at you with a sense of pride within him, beaming at the fact that you heard the monstrosity that came from his room. “If it’s about earlier, sorry about that.”  
“I have seen four naked women in this flat so far in the past two weeks. You're practically turned this place into a bloody brothel.”   
You stepped close to James, glaring at him, and even though he was slightly taller than you, the way you projected your frustration had him slightly on edge, “One day James, one day, this will bite you back in the ass and mark my words, when it does, I’ll be glad I can get some fucking sleep in this flat.” You quietly said, walking into your room.  
“Good night.” He said, to hear your room door slammed shut as a response.

[ 1 week later....]

“AHHHHHH! Y/N!” Your name was lengthened to at least a five minute scream. The time was 10.30 am, and you thought you were going to have some peace while sleeping for once. Turns out, you heard James screaming from his room in absolute horror. You groaned in response. If it weren’t for your comfortable bed, you would’ve wanted to see exactly why James had been screaming, except your bed was too comfortable to be left unattended and you didn’t get enough sleep the night before so this was what you needed. Five minutes later and your door swung open to finding James in his blue robe once again, with a mortified look in his eyes.   
“Y/N!” He shouted.  
“Haven’t you deprived me enough of my sleep?” You growled under the covers, “And learn to knock on the door next time when you have something important to talk about. You’re not getting under the covers with me.”  
You heard frantic breathing and he shouted once again, “Y/N THIS IS SERIOUS.”  
You could sense the urgency in James’ voice and decided to get up, seeing him in his robe, with his hand over his crotch in panic.   
“What are you doing?” You asked as he moved to stand at the side of your bed.  
“Y/N…” He sniffled, “You know stuff about medical science, you went to Oxford, didn’t you?”  
“To study something else. I didn’t say I was studying medical sciences, I’m no doctor.” You rubbed your eyes, leaning your back against the headboard, trying to read the look on his face,  
“That’s close enough! Y/N I need you to check me.” He panicked.  
“What?”  
“I have a problem underneath my robe! I need you to check to see if there’s something wrong!”  
“James if this is some stupid excuse to look at your cock, then no thank you. I don’t want to see how small it is, leave my room please and close the door behind you, thanks.”  
“I’ll have you know it’s not small! AND I’M BEING SERIOUS!” He paced around the room back and forth rubbing his head, “I’m screwed if this is a serious problem. Dear God…”  
“Go and see a proper doctor if it’s something serious.”  
“I don’t trust them! I trust you! I haven’t had to go to the doctor’s in years, I don’t need to now. Right? Please, Y/N I’m begging you.” He even almost went down on his knees to beg, to show you his desperation. You tried to shake it off and said, “I’m not a guy. Can’t you get a male doctor or a male friend to look at it? What about B - I mean Q.” you stopped yourself before you said Q’s real name, you had promised him the other night not to tell James and that’s the only thing that held you back from saying anything, “He did study medical sciences after all and has a masters in it.”  
“Y/N.” He said with a meaningful look in his eyes, “Honestly this is serious. I think there’s something wrong with -”  
“With that?” Your eyes widened.  
“Yes. It’s having some sort of side effect and you don’t want to see what the sheets look like now. I just need you to check if this is odd.”  
You seriously couldn’t escape this now so you decided to move out of the blankets and faced James. “Please.”  
“You know what? I’ll take one quick glance from where I am. But just so you know, I am not moving from here.”  
“I’ll take what I can get.” He said hopefully, shuffling slightly towards you.  
“Maybe that’s what led you to this situation.” You mumbled under your breath. “First I can’t sleep, then you barge into this room like I’m a prison inmate now I have to look at what’s under your robe. This is a shit week.” You groaned as he dropped the robe and you froze, dumbfounded.   
“What? Is it really bad?”  
You turned around, still stunned, “How about you put that robe back on and I'll give you the number of a doctor I know, he’s a good friend of mine, he can check for whatever the problem is downstairs and that way you actually are given some useful medical information.”

A couple of hours later, and you were sat at the laptop, almost in hysterics at the frantic panicking Bond found himself in, after visiting the doctor, who said he’d call James back with the results anytime soon.   
“Is it supposed to feel this itchy?” He said, still with his hand on his crotch.  
“I’m guessing this but no probably not.” You said sipping your cup of tea, sat behind the laptop smiling.   
“Y/N! This isn’t funny! I could be in serious trouble!”   
“What? I’m not laughing. I did say last night that this was going to bite you back if you kept sleeping around with random women, don’t be surprised if the results aren’t great.”

Bond picked up the phone as soon as it rang and answered it, “Yes this is James...Mhm...Yes...So what does that mean?...” His face dropped completely. He couldn’t believe it. You were tempted to ask him what the results were but instead continued working, allowing him to process the news. “This clearly wasn’t recent and has been around for quite a while, the symptoms delaying until now.” The doctor said.  
“Fucking STD…” He said under his breath, “FUCK!” He shouted throwing his phone against his wall and smashed the screen completely. He scratched his head, panicking as you watched, trying not to laugh. “I did warn you…”  
“When I find out who did this…” He grabbed one of the chairs and threw it across the room, nearly missing your head. He was infuriated.

He hadn’t stepped out of his room the whole day, he was too shocked to leave. He couldn’t bring himself to face anyone after hearing the news of his ‘downstairs discovery.’ You weren’t really bothered with James and his problem. It did serve him right. His behaviour had been out of control as of late, but to think that something as horrible as that had been brewing around for such a long time, you felt bad for him, if you really had any sense of humane feelings within you. But for now, it was just a regular day working. At times, you chuckled to yourself at Bond’s reaction, it really wasn’t funny but it was. 

Later he opened the door and shuffled his way to the front room dropping himself on the dining chair table hopelessly. “My life is over…”  
“You’re still alive.”  
“My life is over.” He repeated.  
“You sound like some girl going through a breakup, jeez. This is your own fault, you know that right? I’ve warned you so many times, you’d think a man your age would understand he shouldn’t be going around the way you were - unprotected.”  
“Y/N, I need your help. I need you to help me find out who gave this to me. The doctor said it wasn’t a recent thing, so I need help in finding who did this.” He begged, almost leaning for your hand.  
“Why should I help you? You put me through enough these past few days.” James frowned and you sighed, “But I’ll help you out seeing as you’re desperate.”

So you sat with James and wrote a list of names whom Bond had been involved with the past few years and the list indeed wasn’t short.   
“Hello? Yes...I’m calling to ask if you were involved with one James Bond...Oh he used you? Yes….I’m aware of that unfortunately. By any chance have you contracted any form of sexually transmitted diseases?” The phone ended as you looked at James with a sigh. “Not her.”

After almost thirty phone calls that went south quickly you looked at the list with James and asked him that way. “What about her?” You asked.  
“No. She’s dead. Strangled by her husband after finding her with me.”  
“Okay…” You crossed another name from the list, “What about her?”  
“She’s dead too. Fell off a building.” He responded, rubbing his head.  
“Right...What about her?”  
James took a look at her name once more and shook his head, “She was kidnapped by a terror group. Couldn’t have been her.”  
“What about her?”   
James stared at her name for a moment, “I don’t even remember getting involved with her...Did I get involved with her?...I think I did. Oh no she was killed with a rope after I left the room.”  
“James has it ever crossed your mind that you’re a slight slut. Just a little bit.”  You said.  
“Not if it’s part of the job.” He responded in an oh so ‘obvious’ tone.   
“What about her?”  
“I didn’t get involved with her, she was a lesbian.”  
“I think she lied about that.” You mumbled, “But finally! That is the first woman you haven’t been involved with besides me!” You gave a sigh of relief. “Look we can never find a name if you can’t remember who half these women are or who had something off about them after your shenanigans.” Your hand was on a certain name that Bond looked closely at.  
“Georgina Koslov. I remember there was something off about her.” Bond said to his realisation. “Like what?” Before James could speak, you stopped him, “Actually never mind. I don’t want to know. I’ll track her down and see if I can find anything out.” You said, standing up when James grabbed your hand, looking at you with a meaningful look in his eyes, “Y/N. Thank you for this. Honestly.”  
“Yeah you’re welcome, whatever. I don’t intend on catching your STD so I’m just going to let go now.” You said moving your hand from his and making the two of you a hot beverage.

“Yes. Well thanks for letting me know. It’s no worries...Yeah...Well sorry for your loss.” You ended the call and looked at Bond sympathetically. “She died. So there’s no way you’re getting to her.”  
“Well that’s always a positive.” You choked on your drink once he made the joke and tried your hardest not to laugh.  He gulped his drink, shifting uncomfortably. “God this really is uncomfortable.” He groaned.  
“Did I have to know that?”  
“Well you’ve seen what’s the matter so you are entitled to know. By the way what did you think? Minus the issue?”  
“What did I think of what?”  
“What you saw.” He winked.  
“That was disgusting. Which is why I told you to call the doctor.”  
“I meant in size.”  
“You want me to talk about your abnormal rash?”  
He wasn’t laughing, he glared at you, even after he had made his joke. “Trying to change the topic. I’ll take that as the biggest you’ve ever seen.” He winked proudly.   
“You know, no one is going to sleep with you when you’re positive.”  
“I know.” He almost whimpered, looking at his cup, “How did she die?”  
“I don’t know something about a disease spreading from intercourse with someone. I’m guessing.”  
Bond dropped the mug, “I knew it!” He almost shouted victoriously but stopped himself… “Oh my god I’m stuck with this for the rest of my life…”  
\------------------------------------------------------------------

Bond instantly jumped up from his bed and noticed that the time was 10.30 am. He found his blue robe hanging casually. He shot up from his bed and looked down to realise there was nothing odd about his body. He didn’t have any strange side effects for an STD, everything was left how it was the morning. He sighed in relief, almost jumping for joy inside his room when he left and found you sat at your laptop.   
“Morning.” You groaned sat at the dining table sipping your coffee. “James. You have to stop bringing women here by the way. You have more money than I do. Get a hotel room or something. I’m sick of waking up to hearing whatever is going on inside your room. Makes me sick.” This was odd. A sense of deja vu. What was going on?  
“Okay…” He said slowly.  
“What?”  
“I’ll stop.” He said cautiously.  
“Really?”  
“Yes. I’ve got to stop this, I realised that. No more sleeping around.” He said stunned.

He’d do anything to stop the signs of an STD reappearing and remembered how this morning had panned out, him wanting to meet the woman (with the name you hate). He had learned his lesson and knew he had to cancel this and decided to finally listen to your advice. “I’m going to go out for a drink. Want to come with?”  
“At this time of the day? No thanks.” You said, still working.  
“Okay.” He smiled and left the room, heading for a shower when you turned the packet of pills in front of you that Q had given you the night before. You called him smiling and said, “You’re right. He must’ve dreamt about the side effects because it worked. He’s finally stopping.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure to wrap it up kids! Was it all a dream or was it real? I'll leave that for you to decide! Lmao, I promise it'll be back to plot for the next chapter!


	4. Were you born in a barn?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James is beginning to get fed up of how the reader is unable to notice him in all aspects, even if he lets his pride in the way and refuses to show any form of interest in her. Finally tying to aim for a change, James has a surprise in store for the reader only to come across a few ‘minor’ complications when putting it into action…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back to the plot! I know, the weird and whackiness is gone! But things from here go at 100mph, hopefully and I think I'm working towards something so as usual, sit back, relax and enjoy!

Bond had been working all day and today was no different. There was truly nothing better than spending quality time with the husband of his flatmate...

“I heard Madeleine is coming to visit soon. How’s that going?” Q said, walking over to his laptop and began typing, while Bond stood at his desk with his hands in his pockets.  
“That’s one of the reasons I’m here. She’s visiting on Monday-”  
“That’s great!”  
Bond shook his head immediately, “I need you to get her off my back.”  
“Seriously?”  
“I’m still trying to avoid her at the moment. I’m occupied with…other things at the moment.”  
“Do enlighten me. Why are you avoiding her again?”  
“She’s a bit more clingy than I thought she would be.”  
“Really how so?” He said with a sense of sarcasm in his tone.  
“This isn’t funny." He scolded. "Think of a child with their favourite blanket, one that they cannot let go of at all and refuse to leave. That describes what I am trying to avoid at the moment.”  
“Ouch. Those blankets do tend to be quite old and rugged.” He pulled a face at Bond, trying his best not to chuckle as the man glared at him. “Can you please get her off my back?”  
“I’ll see what I can do…Not like I have a choice anyway.” He mumbled.  
Bond began to smile when Q raised the question, “What is it you’re occupying yourself with? M hasn’t left you any assignments has he?”  
“No.” Bond lengthened the word, watching Q finally figure out what he was talking about.  
“Does this have anything to do with Y/N by any chance?”  
“Yes.”

Q huffed in a ridiculed manner and shook his head, “I’m telling you. There’s something strange going on with Y/N. I fear the next time I see her she’ll probably blow up my flat again and I can’t keep paying for insurance, they’ll think I’m intentionally doing it to get money out of it. All because I said a few things.”  
“Are you sure this is Y/N we’re talking about? Burning a flat out of revenge for a little light hearted flirting? Now that doesn’t sound like her.” He said sarcastically, sipping his tea. Q smiled to himself as he continued typing on his laptop, he was working in his workshop as usual when James decided to pay his colleague a visit, after all they finally had a mutual connection and that was you. So Q was no longer avoidable in this situation. For the past couple of weeks, you had been popping in and out of the flat, returning late and hadn’t spoken a word to James or held a conversation. You were just too busy to see him now you had gotten a job elsewhere at a place you hadn’t even told James either as part of a private hire investigative/forensic scientist. You had slightly been off also ever since James had a conversation with you about Q, in which you clearly stated to him that you weren’t really looking to reminisce past memories, to which Bond responded with a laugh.  
“I’m being serious. Another question, is she usually so - antisocial? She’s been ignoring me the past week. Probably plotting something…”  
“Yep. That is Y/N we are talking about.” He chuckled. “My dear wife does have a bad habit of completely ignoring everyone.”

James felt a sudden distaste at the tip of his tongue once he heard the term ‘wife.’ He suddenly would feel this itchy feeling creeping in that made his skin crawl and heart thump. It wasn’t pleasant.  
“Anyway why are you so bent on gaining Y/N’s attention? Is there something I don’t know about? Remember James, she’s still married.”  
“Oh please.” James hissed defensively, “I don’t do married women.”  
“Wasn’t Lucia married when you went to bed with her?”  
“Widowed.”  
“What about that other one from Croatia?”  
“Recently divorced. Come on Q, you should’ve known that.” He tutted.  
“Harriet, that minister’s daughter from Sweden?”  
“Ok, maybe that’s the only one you have on me but her husband was elsewhere. It’s also part of the job, in case you weren’t aware. Other than that I don’t do married women! Especially not Y/N whom I have no interest in.”  
“You don’t find her attractive whatsoever?”  
“Nope.”  
“Harsh. Not even a little bit? Nothing there for her? Even if she wore a full face of makeup, prepared to go on a date?” Q smirked proudly, sipping his tea once again.  
“Of course not.” James laughed quickly, interrupting Q. He tried his best not to get flustered in front of Q, especially over someone he hadn’t even considered having feelings for…possibly. It all made sense to him at that moment. The way he felt neglected suddenly when you ignored him, busy with work. He felt a sense of emptiness, unable to hear your laughter at something ridiculous on the television, in which he would insult, or laugh at serious situations he had tried to talk about, he couldn’t help but crack a smile at those moments. Even tell you off when you stole one of his shirts, sometimes to wear, most of the time to use for some practical experiment of some sort, meaning he’d have to reprimand you for it. It wasn’t like you two had an argument, you both were just too busy to pay attention to each other…And it was a fortnight! Actually, the main problem was that you were too busy stressing yourself with work that you hardly even saw James, even when you returned to the flat late you were straight off to sleep and gone by the next morning. “I’m concerned for her as a friend and a flatmate…and for my safety. Not used to the silent treatment, it’s very concerning.”

“Alright fine.” Q sighed, “I know something that’ll get her attention. But you have to do this perfectly otherwise she’ll walk in and completely ignore what’s in front of her.”  
“I’m listening.”

——————————

The weekend had finally arrived and you were able to take a well deserved rest. You spent most of the morning asleep and noticed James wasn’t in the flat so you decided to accept a friend’s invite and head off out with them for the day.

James managed to return to his flat by 6.00 pm. It was already pretty dark outside, considering winter in Britain was just - brilliant. He managed to go shopping for different ingredients and had really taken Q’s advice to heart. What was his advice? To make you a home cooked meal. Bond’s idea was to spoil you with a home cooked meal and somehow manage to use his wits to steer you into the direction of beginning to like him, which seemed ridiculous to him at first but there was something about you that he just couldn’t clear from his mind. In the space of a little over an hour, James managed to cook you your favourite dish (choose name) and set the table with a bottle of wine and light the candle in front of it. He sat two plates neatly with the cutlery and had almost finished cooking when he heard the door open.

You began to smile , surprised at the smile of your favourite dish coming from inside the dish as you noticed James was dressed impressively in casual clothing. He was in a navy blue t shirt with a pair of black jeans and trainers, after all he overheard you talking to a friend about how you were into guys who dressed in casual clothing quite a lot of the time, yet could suit up when they needed to.

“What’s this?” You asked, amazed by the sight.  
“I figured you’ve been busy with work and deserve a home cooked meal to relieve some of that stress and we eat out a lot so tonight I’m just throwing something together.”  
“That’s so sweet, I can’t believe you’d do this and I’m surprised you knew my favourite dish.”  
“Of course I’d know. I do listen when you talk to me. You do know that right?”  
You smiled as James poured you a glass of wine. “Loving the casual look as well, it suits you.” You winked.  
Just before you could step any further towards you looked back for a moment smiling before collecting the glass.  
“Ever heard the expression were you born in a barn?” James laughed, shaking his head.  
“Yes of course I have and I find that very rude considering I can’t close the door on a guest.” James began sipping his drink when he saw Q walk through the door and instantly he spat it out, glaring at him.

“I guess she wasn’t born on a barn at all. Thank you for keeping the door slightly ajar for me Y/N, I do appreciate it. There was a quick phone call I had to make. Oh what a beautiful scene, I’m not intruding on anything am I?” He looked directly at James, smiling to find the man growling under his breath.  
“The little shit…” James thought, giving a fake smile.  
“I’m really sorry I should’ve known you were going to make dinner. If I had known-” You apologised looking at James.  
“Don’t worry. Dinner for two can turn to three…right?”  
“Excellent.” Q responded as you told him to make himself comfortable inside while you headed off with James into the kitchen.  
“I really hope you don’t mind the fact I invited Q over.” You said, reaching for another glass. James grabbed another plate and looked at you smiling, “Of course I don’t. Why would I be bothered?  
“Thank you, for all of this.” You placed your hand on his chest for a moment, smiling before you left to go and join Q inside the front room.

Dinner was not awkward at all…There wasn’t any tension…Q definitely wasn’t scared of what James was going to do with a knife and fork in his hand. You looked on at the two, it was a tense atmosphere and you were starting to enjoy yourself ever so slightly as you poured the two more wine, especially for James who you could have heard growling at Q if you were sat where he was.  
“So, Bond, you never told me you were a cook.” Q said to break the ice, smiling as he gulped on his wine.  
“I don’t cook often because I’m never in my flat, remember?” Bond said, trying his best not to make it sound so sharp and harsh. “Then again we all have tricks up our sleeves don’t we?”  
“Unfortunately some of those tricks usually don’t go accordingly to plan do they?” Q chuckled.  
You were seriously enjoying this. You watched the two trade sly remarks to one another and didn’t even need to speak to keep the conversation going. That was until things started to get slightly out of hand and you could tell Q was beginning to get a little frightened in James’ presence.  
“Alright children, that’s enough. You argue like my colleagues at work and I need a break from that.” You tutted, “James, you know this reminds me of that time we went to the pizza parlour and you made the restaurant manager feel uncomfortable because asked if the food was okay.”  
“It does, doesn’t it?” James smiled at Q’s direction. You could sense Bond was all for making Q jealous of your friendship, except it had the opposite effect. You knew Q best, he was a lot smarter than that.  
“Y/N, you remember back in Oxford, how we were a part of the unstoppable trio. You me and Jonathan in the chemistry lab working on quite the discovery.”  
“Oh yes, in fact I do remember. We were all pretty spontaneous back then.” You cautiously said, looking over at James as the man raised his eyebrows at the word ‘spontaneous.’  
“Spontaneous you were indeed.” Q winked, “Once Harry, who seemed to be the third wheel at the time, had left us I remembered when we both thought it would be a good idea to make sparks fly inside that lab…and not only from the -”  
“Out of all people to talk about to, you decide to talk to my flatmate? Can we not, while we’re having dinner?” You interrupted quickly before he could go into detail, getting all flustered, that was when your phone began to ring. “Oh, I’ve got to pick up this call, must be work. I’ll be right back.” You walked off to take the phone as James turned to Q.  
“You came up with this whole idea just so you could ruin it!” Bond hissed.  
“What makes you think that?”  
“Don’t try that crap with me Q. You better tell me the rest of this story.” He said, glaring at Q,who began to smile.  
“Like I said, Y/N is very spontaneous, she could be adventurous if she wanted to. I thought she was quite the casual woman at first, her idea of a romantic night was simply just to have a night of binge watching television, playing video games and having snacks but she’s more open to anything really. It takes a lot to keep up with someone like her, good thing I was always able to in those encounters. In that chemistry lab was the first of many times. Not only in there though, that would be very wrong. The way she took those bottles and…” Q started into his glass, smirking and took a quick gulp before he looked back up at James, “Actually maybe that is a story for another day.” He smiled, noticing how interested James was.  
“You a little shit.”  
“Now, that is a rude thing to say to your guest. Why would you call me that? Were you thinking of having a romantic evening in with my wife?”  
“Your wife. Wife. It is a funny word isn’t it? Usually it associates those who I don’t know - live together, spend time together, not four years apart and later for the husband to discover she is sharing a flat with another man.”  
“Hey, I never said our marriage was perfect.”  
“You hadn’t seen her for four years! That’s hardly a marriage at all if you ask me. She’s practically single.”  
“I trust you enough not to try anything on with dear Y/N.”  
“What if I don’t have to try anything? What if she’s already onto me?” James winked.  
“Now that would be absurd considering you don’t do married women, remember? And besides, Y/N is a lot smarter than you think she is. She wouldn’t come onto someone she isn’t attracted to even if it was a matter of life and death.” He chuckled.

As the tension started to build you joined the two once again, noticing James holding his fork upwards with the bottle of wine completely finished. “Why hello Y/N. We were just discussing how Bond’s girlfriend Madeleine will be visiting soon from Austria. On Monday.”  
James’ eyes bulged immediately, his breathing began to run sharp, he was infuriated.  
“I knew it! I knew they were dating! But girlfriend, sounds very serious. If she ever visits - actually go to a hotel room I think that would preferable. Congratulations.”  
Q could sense James’ blood boiling as he clutched the glass of wine in his hand.

“Well, lovely dinner James. It was absolutely delicious, I should start visiting more often.” Q said, quickly wiping his mouth with the handkerchief.  
“Please don’t.” He said sternly, low enough so both of you couldn’t hear him.  
“Y/N, it’s been a pleasure spending all day with you, hopefully we can do it again sometime.”  
“Yeah, alright, if you say so.” He leaned in and gave a quick kiss to your cheek then winked at James and left quickly before James could attempt to throw the fork at him.  
“He did not need to do that.” You muttered under your breath rolling your eyes before you turned to James, “What was that all about? He left real quick.” You said curiously.  
“I don’t know. M called him for something.”  
“At this time of the night?”  
James nodded as he cleared the plates.  
“You said something to him didn’t you?”  
“He just came up with some terrible ideas that’s all.” Bond chuckled as you rolled your eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've all gotta love the sneaky husband!


	5. Duck? Swann? Same thing.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She’s here. Bond’s girlfriend has finally arrived. Dr Madeleine Swann. Don’t they make the perfect hot couple? Well...after spending some ‘quality’ time with James’ new girlfriend, unfortunately, you already find her the most irritable person you have ever had the displeasure of sitting in the same room with….

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we have our angst! Well, the beginning of a very angry reader starting to feel unwelcome during her stay! Again, leave a kudos, that would be great thanks! I hope you all enjoy the calm before the storm...

[1 Week Before…]

“Come on Y/N. Sit with me.” James said as he shifted aside on his bed.  
He had been working on a case to do with a Turkish terror threat for a while now and the case had proved to show some difficulties. It was 9.00 pm and you could see Bond was slightly frustrated with the way his shirt was untucked, sleeves rolled up and slightly unbuttoned, his tie had been thrown to one side, he didn’t really care how he had looked, especially in front of his flatmate half the time. You didn’t care how you looked either, in a long t-shirt and a pair of leggings beneath, you were starting to feel more comfortable in the flat almost over eight months in. You both had been getting a lot closer - well in the eyes of others, you two made more snarky remarks to each other as a way of ‘respect’ or some form of friendship.  
“Are you’re scared I’m going to bite?” He remarked.  
“In all the wrong places.” You teased. “You have no idea…” You mumbled that part to yourself quietly.  
“Come on. I won’t bite.”  
“No touching.” You said with a stern tone in your voice.  
“No touching.” He repeated with his hands up.  
“I’m being serious.”

“I’m not going to do anything Sir.” He laughed, “I just want you to look at this case with me that’s all…Unless you’re uncomfortable with that.”  
“Please. I’m the one who does the uncomfortable making, not you.” You said as you sat next to him, leaning against the headboard and looked at the photographs of the terror suspect.

You two sat together talking about the case for over an hour and you realised, you hadn’t been this close to James ever. And for the first time ever, there were no flirtatious jokes - well he managed to slip in one or two but he really did want your help. He turned to you, smiling once you’d both finally stopped talking.  
“So just out of curiosity, do you think you will ever divorce your husband?”  
“Way to drop in the question.” You laughed, “And why are you asking? So you can try and jump into my bed and prove you don’t go around sleeping with married women?”  
“No.” Bond chuckled shaking his head, “I’ll wait two weeks after.”  
You turned, glaring at him, prepared to jump out of the bed and make a run for it, “I’m joking! It’s a genuine question. You two aren’t even a couple so you’d understand why I’d ask that question.”  
“Well, I don’t know. I’ve just been too lazy.”  
“But what if you weren’t feeling lazy?”  
“I can’t imagine myself being bothered enough though.”  
“God you’re annoying.”  
“Thank you.”  
“It’s almost attractive.”  
“Not happening James.”  
“Got it.” There was a silent pause before he continued, “So did you love him?”  
“At one point, yeah. But it’s just I think we see each other more as friends.”  
“Uh oh. That’s the kind of thing you say once you’ve had a break up.” He laughed.  
“No. I told you what happened. We had to move away to different places and just grew distant. Had no time to talk to each other about anything or even bothered to see each other down the line.” You looked down at your hands with a sigh, James was genuinely interested. He listened to your every word when you opened up about your marriage, it was almost an odd therapy session.  
“So, same time next week? This time a little less talk and more action?”  
“In your dreams.”  
“Fine. Playing hard to get, you won’t be able to handle this anyway.” He winked, looking down.  
“Handle what? There’s nothing to handle, not even downstairs.” James became stunned as you slipped out of his bed smiling, was he trying to undress you with his eyes?  
“Oh and don’t stare too long, you have a girlfriend.”  
“What girlfriend?” He said, enjoying the view behind you.

[Present...]

The evening in Chelsea had finally hit and during winter especially, nothing could defeat the feeling of soaking up the warmth of the flat, being on the couch wrapped up in a blanket with a cup of hot chocolate with whipped cream and marshmallows and some popcorn with (your favourite show) on television, James’ light blue shirt and your Pj bottoms. To set the record straight, you had always borrowed his shirts for experiments at home and never returned them but this was a different case. Your laundry had stacked exponentially and the clothes you had left were down to the ugliest t shirt and bottoms you owned, which you were not willing to put on at all, especially when you’re living with someone like James who knew how to tease. So on your day off, you had to get that sorted immediately. Today was your day off and you appreciate it more than anything. A day away from James and his ridiculous saga with Q, which still you haven’t been able to divorced from (your laziness had increased by a milestone since you moved to London) and had the displeasure of being the centre of it. Today was definitely a break. From Bond and all his questions, his flirtatious tricks and from Q and his snarky remarks. James was out working as usual, considering he was ‘Mr. 24/7’ and had to be alert all the time - something about a debriefing had to take place, you couldn’t remember. It’s evidently clear you aren’t one to listen to what James is usually up to at work.  
Just when you thought you were going to spend the entire night like this, binge watching your favourite television show, that thought was immediately defeated by the sound of the door unlocking. James stepped in and noticed you resting comfortably on the couch.

“Oh hello.” He mumbled quietly, noticing you in a change of clothes, “This is the most comfortable I’ve ever seen you in the flat.” His rich voice caught your attention instantly. You turned to him and casually ate popcorn, giving him a slight shrug.  
“I live here too, don’t I?” You responded with a proud smirk. “Better take advantage of what I have.”  
“That being my shirt? Not that I’m saying it looks bad on you.” He smirked too, except his eyes were on you completely, eyeing the way you were dressed in particular to his fascination.  
“What? I had to call the plumber to fix the washing machine.”  
“Really? A plumber? You should’ve told me that the washing machine had a problem.”  
“You’ve been really busy as of late I couldn’t disturb you being on that case for a washing machine and what would you have done? Shown your manly skills off in front of me?”  
“If you wanted me to, I could’ve made time to help you out and who knows? I don’t even think a washing machine would even have to be involved. I could just show you what it does.” He winked. The man was at it again, he was at his flirtatious jokes once again, yet this time you had no remark or form of response to that. You simply shook your head, knowing he wasn’t going to give up.  
There was a comfortable silence between you two, as James appreciated the way you looked, especially in his shirt, it was almost - attractive in a way. The way your hair was let down to one side, while you were practically covered in two blankets, one being James’ shirt almost completely covering more than just your arms and the actual blanket itself. It was almost tempting for him to join you.

See the emphasis on the almost? Here’s where Bond stops himself in his tracks…

Footsteps came from behind him and entered the flat. A woman with flowing blonde hair and a slim figure stood beside James, with a long expensive coat, under that an all black outfit, black blouse and trousers and you could’ve sworn you saw a pair of Louis Vuitton heels and handbag. Shit. An upper class snobby woman had just casually walked in wearing - was that - were those - Bond’s Tom Ford sunglasses? You quickly took your phone and cursed yourself realising what day it was. Shit. It was MONDAY. And you knew what that meant. Bond’s girlfriend, Madeleine Swann was standing before you. Something inside you wanted to poke and prod her, see if she really was as snobby as your assumptions believed her to be - you were just that type of person or maybe she dressed to impress for him. James does have a love for dressing lavishly in suits. In fact, you may or may not have been ruining a £500 shirt at this current present moment in time. Though you’ve seen him dress completely different to that and you considered those his best days, so you weren’t embarrassed to be dressed so casually in front of her. She looked around the flat for a moment, with a smile on her face, impressed by the sight. Then she turned to you and slowly took her sunglasses off with a curious look on her face. She then looked at James then back at you, confused.

“Oh right!” Bond ended the silence quickly, “Sorry. Y/N this is Dr Madeleine Swann. Madeleine this is Y/N Y/L/N, she’s one of the forensic investigators who works on the same branch with us sometimes. Mainly when a body is involved. Oh and she’s my flatmate.” He looked at the both of you, eagerly smiling.  
Dr of what? You thought. Perfecting the sciences and study behind the resting bitch face? How you wanted to say something smart to test her, and it wasn’t even because you were jealous, it was just because of the way she looked at you. But then again, maybe that’s the way she normally looked, so you had to give her a chance and held your tongue. You rose from the couch and extended your hand, “Hello. I’ve heard so much about you.”

She paused, looking at your hand for a moment, you could’ve sworn that was a dirty look, “And I’ve heard very little about you.” She said in a more serious tone. She then laughed it off and shook your hand after a short pause.

“Nice shirt.” She remarked.  
“Why thank you, I do know a thing or two about dressing appropriately for the occasion, especially in the comfort of my own flat. What’s the point of dressing as if I was going to meet the Queen all the time? Would be quite painful, especially for the people around me.”  
She scoffed and turned to Bond with a smile, “James, with the way you described your flatmate, I thought he would’ve been some dirty, greasy, big man, who works as a bouncer at a nightclub. I didn’t know you were staying with a woman after all you’ve told me.” She smiled.

You were tempted to spit the remainder of your hot beverage on her expensive shoes. Well that was rude. But then a thought crossed your mind…

Woman. Now that’s what offended her. The fact that you were a woman living with her boyfriend as flatmates - when you put it that way, any jealous girlfriend would’ve thought this was the perfect scenario. Then again, what competition did she have? If James was to describe you to anyone, you could’ve sworn he would’ve used the word ‘sociopathic’ and that was a definite turn off for him. Plus did she just call you a dirty big guy? You were sure to have words with James after that, but for now you had to be a kind host, make the woman you would gladly never see again welcome into your shared flat.

“Yeah, she’s a woman. Did I mention that to you? I swear I did.” He chuckled to himself.  
“Baby, is that one of your shirts?” Madeleine turned to James holding his hand tightly, with an innocent look in her eyes.  
“Uh yeah, it’s - the laundry ran low so I let her borrow one of mine.”  
“Really? Was she so poor that she couldn’t go out and buy something else other than borrow someone’s boyfriend’s things and claim it as theirs? I mean doesn’t she have a husband to borrow things from?”  
“Unbelievable. You told her didn’t you?” You asked Bond, who kept his eye on Madeleine, in particular her lips.

He then turned to look at your direction and noticed that you were uncomfortable and felt insulted, simply through the fake smile ‘death’ glare you had given him. You wrapped up your blanket and picked up your cup.  
“Please, make yourself feel at home.” You said, keeping your piece and headed to the kitchen to put it away. There you were with your manners, you so wanted to completely annihilate her with insults there and then, starting with the way she walked in like the flat was hers, but if anything, you were taught by your close university friends not to take that road so quickly. You left James and Madeleine to talk alone while you washed your cup.

“I’ll be back in a second.”  
You heard from James. He walked into the kitchen and leaned his back against the counter so he could see you clearly. “So, what do you think?”  
“What do I think of what?” You asked, finally finishing with the washing and dried your cup with a dish towel.  
“You know what I’m asking. Y/N, you’re a very intelligent and capable woman but sometimes I think you purposely decide to have a dreadfully slow mind for the sake of being ironic.”  
“Do I?” You gasped sarcastically, “Says the one who can’t catch up with the fact that his girlfriend is a slight stuck up bitch.” You mumbled low enough for him not to hear.  
“What was that?” He asked.  
You chuckled to yourself and shook your head, “I’m sorry I was just saying that I don’t have an opinion on what you just asked because my dreadfully slow mind would need time to process all of this. Come back to me tomorrow when I finally am able to keep up with you.”  
“Y/N…” He said with a stern tone in his voice. “What do you think of Madeleine?”  
“Oh you’re talking about the doctor - by the way what does she have a PhD in? I’d like to know, so my dreadfully slow mind doesn’t find itself in the predicament of finding the answer out from her.”  
“Are you jealous?” He smiled.  
“Jealous of who?” You laughed, practically in hysterics, “Bro, I think she’s an absolute charmer and I can’t wait for the day you start to pull your hair out because she’s driving you crazy - I mean crazily in love with her. I mean it’s already happening with me.” You said and quickly moved passed James, “Try not to make too much noise. Good night.” You said as you walked down the hall.

Morning had arrived and you knew that Madeleine was here. You just knew she would be, especially with the time she arrived at the flat. You were in no mood to see her and James, only because if that was what you were facing for an entire day, you’d rather work a full day, then overtime, then overtime that overtime. There was something about her. Something off about her. Her clinginess to James, the way she eyed you as if you were competition, the way you dressed, well maybe she was having a rough night. So you tried to brush away the thoughts and took a shower, heading into the front room to find James and Madeleine stood in the kitchen - together. His arms wrapped around her waist as he was in just a robe and she was in a nightgown, she couldn’t keep his hands off him, constantly kissing him as if it was the last time they saw each other.

“Oh gross.” You said, walking straight into the kitchen, you squint your eyes, disgusted and tried to make yourself some toast when you heard Madeleine giggling and Bond mumbling something in his deep voice. These two were not teenagers! Fuck it. You thought. You quickly drank your orange juice and grabbed your toast, heading for the door.  
“Y/N? Where you going?” James finally asked, letting go of Madeleine and aware that you were about to leave.  
“Work.”  
“But I thought you don’t have work today.” He said. Madeleine turned to you, moving his arms around her waist once more and looking at you with a smile.  
“Now I do.” You responded. “I just think working is much better than doing nothing - you know - watching a wet blanket cling on to some old tool or teddy bear.” You said closing the door behind you. God that was gross. The remark itself made you smile, but you were still annoyed you couldn’t have the day in peace.

You kept yourself busy, catching up/texting a new friend of yours, Jonathan. You both met at a bar, while you were out with colleagues and had gotten to know each other better ever since. He was comfortable to be around, easygoing and completely handsome if you could say so yourself. After that you were sent to a crime scene, as part of an emergency to collect different samples for a double murder. Bond and his clingy girlfriend ceased to exist in your mind by the time you were off busy. However, by the time you returned home a few hours later, there was something off you sensed. You headed into the flat and suddenly realised there was a change. You looked around and found all the furniture in odd places, the television had moved into a strange area, far away from the window, the dining table was distanced all the way to the front door but the thing that ticked you off the most…your chemistry set moved.

“WHAT THE FUCK?” You shouted, seeing Madeleine move some more of the furniture around the flat.  
“Oh hi!” She jumped and turned to see you with a smile but then she sensed your slight anger and frowned, “Sorry, James and I thought the flat could do with a little feng-shui, a change to feel a fresh breath of air.” She said swaying her long, expensive skirt towards you. God you were fuming, you felt the heat starting to boil inside you, your anger rapidly grew, it was getting harder and harder not to plant your fist into the wall.

“I’m currently choking in this air created by stupidity right now.” You growled, “Sorry, who said you could touch my equipment?”  
“James.” She said looking down to her feet innocently, “He said that it was perfectly fine to move things for the sake of making room if that was going to make all of us feel more comfortable and at home.”  
“Did he now?” You raised your eyebrow and balled your hands into a fist, your breathing grew quick and sharp, attempting not to stab Madeleine with your piercing glare.  
“I had to.” Bond said as he walked in with a two cups of coffee, one for him and one for Madeleine, “You could do with a change, your work is cluttered everywhere. Madeleine said that such a mess brings negativity into the flat. She also said that it was good for the vibes in the flat and a positive home definitely brings a positive mind.”  
“Who the fuck is she? A fucking monk? Don’t you presume to tell me about negativity when you kill people for a living!” You raised your voice, it was impossible not to rage, especially at the woman in front of you, who had irritated you in record breaking time. There were things you got angry about. Even though you were a sarcastic individual but one thing that ticked you off was when someone messed with your work. That was crossing the line, which she did.  
“Y/N, oh my god I’m so sorry. Look if you don’t like the way the flat is, I’ll put everything back.” She began hyperventilating in front of Bond, who began to glare at you as he rubbed her back.  
“Yes that is what I want and I don’t want you to touch my shit again, that would be great. When are you leaving again?”  
“Y/N…” He said sternly.  
“What?!” You hissed at Bond.  
“There’s no need to take out your anger out on Madeleine, she was just trying to help! You’re blowing this way out of proportion.”  
“I’M DOING WHAT?” Your voice raised even louder, in disbelief.  
“Y/N. A word please.” Bond said, as Madeleine looked at the two awkwardly. She began sniffling, which you thought was complete and utter bullshit then stormed off into the kitchen as James spoke to Madeleine.  
“I was just trying to help…” She said, frowning, in a timid and terrified voice.  
“It’s fine, love. I’ll get this sorted.” He kissed her cheek and gestured her to sit down then followed you into the kitchen.

You stood staring out at the window, holding both hands on the counter and looked down trying your best to slow your breathing as Bond watched you from behind, annoyed. He then headed over to you and flipped you around to look at him with a hard tug on the shoulder.  
“What was the meaning of that?!” He asked.  
“That was rude! Don’t grab my fucking shoulder!” You shoved his hand off it and almost went to hit him but you stopped yourself, glaring at him with your hands balled into fists, “You know I told you in confidence that I was married, you know that my work is very important to me, YOU KNOW that when you have a visitor in this flat they are YOUR responsibility and as your responsibility you make sure that no one touches my stuff! So why on earth did you let Dr Mindful Duck touch my chemistry set and files!”  
“Her name is Madeleine and it’s not duck, it’s Swann.”  
There was a silence between the two of you. You were both extremely close to each other and you felt the walls closing in on the both of you. The tension was there. The anger was definitely there. The sharp breathing and deadly sound of silence took over the kitchen for a brief moment before you said…  
“Fuck you.” You spat, squinting your eyes in disbelief.  
“I’m sorry I didn’t know you were going to get this angry! You being married to Q isn’t even a big deal, why are you complaining about it!”  
“It’s not just that James. Who knows what kind of stuff you said about me behind my back! I thought we were friends! Friends don’t describe their friends to other people as a dirty, greasy nightclub bouncer do they? What have you said behind my back actually?”  
“Nothing Y/N! I’ve said nothing!” He sighed, “Look, I know you don’t like your things being moved and I’ll deal with that myself. I’ll put it back. Just please go and apologise to Madeleine.”  
“And why would I do that?!”  
“Because you haven’t been nice to her or given her a chance the moment she walked through the door!” He hissed, “Here’s the reason you are struggling to make new friends, have you considered not being a complete arse from the beginning and trying to be friendly for once! Madeleine hasn’t been in London a minute and hardly knows her way around! She is out to impress you and you don’t even appreciate what she’s doing for you! You’re making life really difficult for me Y/N and I seriously don’t appreciate it when my own flatmate is butting heads with my girlfriend!”  
Before you could come up with a smart remark, you smiled, “You know what? I’ll apologise. I’ll go and make yours and everyone else’s life easier and say sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t be an arse and give people a chance…”  
“Really? Thank you.” He said, relieved and smiling. “And I’m sorry I grabbed you like that, I know it was wrong. I just want you two to get along. It’s really important you do.” He extended his hand, “No hard feelings?”  
You looked at his hand, shaking your head, “No thank you. I don’t know where’s that been. And besides, you don’t want to shake hands with someone that is a complete arse.” You nudged passed him, and he rolled his eyes, sighing deeply, “Christ…”

 

The moment you stepped back into the front room, Madeleine jumped from her seat, waiting to hear from you. “So Madison-”  
“It’s Madeleine.” She corrected quickly.  
“Yeah - same thing. I’m sorry for being a dick, I know I can overreact sometimes and don’t really care about the other person’s feelings as much, which is awful…” You turned around and found James watching you expectantly with his arms folded, “I just wanted to say, I’m willing to start over if you are.” You smiled.  
“That would be great! Thank you so much!” She said smiling, relieved and hugged you quickly, in which you didn’t respond to it, leaving your arms by your side. She really was an off person. You pushed away for a moment smiling - well you were actually freaked out by her strange behaviour, “Well, I’m just going to sort a few things out.” You turned around slowly and walked down the hall, “James I expect my shit back on the table otherwise tomorrow isn’t going to be fun for anyone.”  
And with that, you left the two alone again.

“Is she always like that?” Madeleine asked James, who looked at your direction, watching you walk into your room with a smile.  
“Unfortunately, she is. But don’t worry there’s more to her beneath the surface.” He practically smirked, with his hands in his pockets.  
“Excuse me?” She said, disapprovingly.  
“What? Nothing.” He turned to her smiling and moved his arm around her waist, “I meant she’s more of an open person if you get to know her and much more friendlier.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here we go...the next chapter does get intense! We're also introduced to Jonathan, who I will explain about in the next chapter! The reader just keeps getting sassier, and where does James' loyalty lie?


	6. The calm before the storm...and then The Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isn’t it fun spending time with Madeleine? You being the so very patient person that you are try your best not to lose it after the issue a few nights before in which chaos had imploded and James had to deal with a very angry flatmate. But now it is your patience that is being tested and you no longer know how long you can contain the calm before the storm…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go! It’s time for less talk and more action! Hopefully you’ll enjoy this! Now here’s where the part about Jonathan is important. He can be an actor of your choice! I’ve put the main three men in mind as a suggestion in the tags (Tom Hiddleston, Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy but you could also have other suggestions like Benedict Cumberbatch or anyone else! It's your choice!) and increasingly you’ll discover more about the friendship between Jonathan and the reader! 
> 
> Also Madeleine is a psychopath inspired by certain people LMAO. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

[6 Nights Before - Saturday Night]

Bond sat in his room once again, at his desk this time on the phone, he finally had enough evidence to catch out the Turkish terrorist and the ability to do his job, going to Dubrovnik to catch him and make the arrest. He was dressed in a grey t-shirt and some dark blue jeans, it was his day off - but then again ‘Mr 24/7’ didn’t know that had existed, so he continued working from home.

Meanwhile you were laying on the couch, relaxed, watching some television. You were bored with the cases you were given to work on. Why would you bother? Your head rested on the cushion and you were completely immersed in the programme you were watching. Seconds later, you feel a slight nudge at your head. You look up and find James hovering over you with a smirk.  
“So how do you want to do this?” He winked, looking down at you.  
“Oh I’m not moving. You can undress me the way you are with your eyes right now and then do all the work on top. Unless you’re as submissive as I think you are.” You smiled, closing your eyes as you took a deep breath. You weren’t ashamed to keep playing the game, especially with James, who was taken aback by what you said. These last few months you were actually comfortable around him and didn’t mind playing this ongoing game you had with each other. But this week especially, you showed that there was a lot more to you and James enjoyed it. He enjoyed the way the both of you managed to get along really well and even though there were moments in which your chaotic antics had put him into trouble, he started to enjoy life at home a little more than he did going abroad and living the adrenaline of catching the world’s most dangerous people.  
“What? You really want to do this?” He asked, stunned.  
“I must warn you again, I am hard to please, feel free to take your time. A girl does love it when she isn’t rushed.” You continued smirking and bit your lip as he crouched, trying to read your expression, you finally opened your eyes and he could see the sincerity. He took your smile as an answer to proceed and placed his hand on your cheek and leaned in close, when your lips were about to meet…

You suddenly made a monstrous burp in his face. Because it was from a can of Coca-Cola you just had, it didn’t help your breath as he instantly pulled back and pushed your face to one side with his large hands.  
“Y/N! God that stinks! Was that garlic?” He pulled a face, appalled by the smell.  
You were in hysterics, couldn’t control yourself, “No it was coke! That tells you to stop trying that shit! Jesus, James. You know I’m not going to sleep with you but it’s cute that you still try and be all ‘alluring.’ ”  
“To be fair I thought you were going to slap or flick me in the face, maybe even punch me in the nose so this is surprisingly an upgrade from a physical beating. Unless you’re into going rough…” He shook his head smiling.  
“Did you not hear a word of what I just said to you?!”  
“Yeah I did. How can I ignore the sound of a barking chihuahua half the time I’m here?” He laughed, it was funny how he stayed crouched in front of you, making sure he was at eye level with you and there was no sign of an awkward silence or being uncomfortable. You being well…you, the reaction to James’ statement allowed you to act offended and push James on the floor so he was sat there glaring at you.

This was the James you were used to. The man who dressed casually and didn’t care if he was making a fool of himself in front of his closest friends, he didn’t have a reputation to uphold and you loved taking advantage of that.

“No I don’t! That offends me greatly, Mr Bond!” You fake gasped.  
“Yeah, whatever. I’m starting to realise that it’s impossible to offend you. Come on, budge up.” He said, finally standing beside the couch.  
“I don’t want to.” You groaned.  
“Y/N…”  
“There’s a couch over there! Right across us!”  
“I know but I want to sit here and actually be able to see the television, come on. Move.”

You decided not to move. You stayed still, laying down and James made his decision to physically lift you up by your side as you groaned to sit up straight. You were too lazy to stay sat up right and dropped on his shoulder. Something inside him had allowed him to enjoy this moment and not to question anything. So you pretended as though nothing had happened. The two of you watched television silently before you finally realised where you were and said…

“I hate you.” You said, pushing yourself off him.  
“Only someone who loves me would say that.” He pulled off his signature smirk, shaking his head.  
“Ooh your childhood and relationships have been based off so many lies.”  
“Shut it chihuahua.” He said, silencing you with his finger. You gave him a middle finger in return and headed off to the kitchen to pour the both of you a cup of tea, then returned with James’ favourite mug and a different one. You handed James the one that neither of you had used and stole his mug as he looked at you in disbelief.  
“Are you taking the mick? Give me back my mug!”  
You drank from it to irritate him even further, giving him a fake smile. “You know you’ll pay for that.” He said.  
“I’m sorry, I thought you liked to drain out the sound of an annoying chihuahua. Leave me be.” You smirked, drinking your tea, slowly.

After a while of talking about nonsense, Bond finally dropped another question about your relationship. You should’ve known this was going to happen, every time you’re stuck in the same room with him and there’s a small silence, he’s always building up to ask the question.

“So about your marriage…”  
“I knew it! I knew you were setting me up to stay here because you wanted to ask me about my marriage again!” You exclaimed, finally put the cup down on the coffee table.  
“It’s just a brief question! I just wanted to ask, after Q had left, was there anything else that happened? I just don’t understand how you could marry for some form of a social experiment, then develop feelings for each other then never speak to each other once the both of you move!”  
“Haven’t you done that with most of your flings? Actually maybe most of them ended up dead.”  
“Ouch. But true. However, in your case I’d like to think no one had actually died…well unless you killed someone because you’re capable of doing that but still! Your situation usually happens if there’s someone else in the equation!”

You kept quiet.

James’ eyes widened. Now this was interesting. He turned completely to you, his arm resting on the top of the couch, one leg relaxed over the other as he focused on you. ”Oh? So there was someone involved. Was it your doing or was it Q?”  
You sighed, slouching back on the couch and looked at your hands, “Me.”  
“Now this just got interesting…”  
“There was someone I did like and I’d like to think he liked me…Well after the one time we sat down watching television together like this…” Bond became heavily interested, watching you look at your hands, smiling to yourself as you continued, “I knew this guy from uni, super handsome, super charming, super intelligent. He makes people in Scotland Yard look like amateurs. I always cared a great deal about him. Anyway, one night he came over to see how I was as I hadn’t seen him in a few weeks so he wanted to see how I was doing without…Q, and we were supposed to be solving a case together so there I was, absolutely immersed in his arms in my flat. He had the deepest voice I had ever known, rich and baritone, something that couldn’t be competed with. Not even you, which makes him more attractive now thinking about it. I remember looking up at his eyes, those deep blue eyes. I don’t know what I felt at the time, possibly more hungry than I should’ve been because I grabbed him by his tight blue shirt, pulled him in and I was onto him. I couldn’t keep my hands of him and he couldn’t keep his hands off me, he was more dominant and rough, just how I liked it so you were right about something. I was hungry for something and that something was him. We went off to my room and I did the spontaneous thing and allowed him to do all sorts to me that a woman couldn’t even dream of doing.”  
“All sorts? Any details you want to spill?”  
“Not particularly no. But I must say, for someone who cared about is work more than people, he surely did make things work between us, I was completely undone for the first time…” You smirked.  
“What? Really? You…” He gulped, “He really? You and -”  
“No of course not!” You slapped him on the arm, “The look on your face!” You laughed, hysterically once again as he sighed, rolling his eyes. “Seriously though, I did like this other guy though. It’s just we were very good mates and we knew something was there but in reality we were like…Nah. We were scared things would be awkward. Oh but his friend from the army? Now I’d like a slice of that. Definitely a man of action. And before you speak, no I’m not interested in whatever action you want to bring to the table.”

Soon you fell asleep and it was evident that you were deeply relaxed. You looked peaceful, how could a sociopath look this…appealing while they slept? There was one problem in all of this though, you were sleeping on James’ shoulder! You tipped on the side and he found himself stuck there, unable to move. He couldn’t physically tell you to go to bed, you were terrifying when you were angry and tired so he gently placed your head on his lap, so he could at least reach for the remote and changed the channel when he heard your voice a short while later,

“James?” You said wearily.  
“Yes?”  
“Thanks for helping me not get evicted the other week. I forgot to thank you for that.”  
“It’s no problem.” He smiled, “I’ll always have your back, no matter how bad things are.”  
“Really? Even if I’m on trial for killing someone?”  
“I’m currently working on lies to use so you could actually have a chance of roaming free.”  
“You’d actually defend me?”  
“Yeah of course. We’re friends.”  
“I’ve been upgraded to friend?! That’s nice…” You said, your sleepy voice trailing off.  
A few minutes later you said…“Wait a minute. What’s that lump I feel on my cheek?” You say so suddenly, as though you hadn’t been asleep at all.  
“What?”  
“Right there on your trousers…WOAH. ARE YOU…?” You shrieked.  
“WAIT REALLY?” Bond jumped up embarrassed as you laughed, that was when he realised there was nothing he felt beneath his trousers in the first place.  
“I was only joking. You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”  
“You are actually a twat.” He growled.

[Present...]

After the previous night’s outburst, the next four days were…dreadful. She practically lived inside the flat with you two! She just wouldn’t leave! You had to deal with Madeleine forcing her friendship upon you way too often and especially in front of James, she giggled and laughed and went all ‘touchy-feely’ around him as if they were never going to see each other again. This was beyond disgusting. Especially when you often caught Madeleine and James having their moments all over the flat. It was like they didn’t even respect your presence inside. Did she not have any decency? Clearly not.

On this morning in particular, you headed into the front room and found James sat on the couch with Madeleine resting on his lap, she forced his hand onto hair hair and he began to stroke it gently, looking around as if he were looking for an escape route. That was until he found you.

“Hey! Y/N! How are you!” He instantly said, pushing Madeleine’s head up quickly and turning his attention to you.  
“Fine…” You said slowly. You were all dressed to go to work. Truth be told, you loved going to work, even though it was exhausting and felt long sometimes, just the feeling of going to different crime scenes, following the adrenaline and making shocking discoveries was something you couldn’t help but enjoy. Hell, it was something you loved doing. But you loved working now more than ever. James jumped to his feet and headed over to you, “Are you going to work?”  
“Yes…” You trailed off slowly, looking at him skeptically. “Today is a working day.”  
“Right!” He said frantically, “Would you like me to drop you off? I remember you saying you wanted me to drop you off.” He didn’t take one look at Madeleine and you noticed his eyes had widened as he mouthed, “Let me drop you off.” He wanted to drop you off but as you looked at his girlfriend, who gave a sweet smile, you then turned to him grinning mischievously, “No I think taking a taxi is fine. I have the money.”  
“You used that money to pay the plumber on Monday, remember? I have time to drop you off, don’t worry.” He said a little more forcefully. You understood where this was heading and couldn’t stop yourself smiling from the desperation on James’ face.  
“Uh No. I have a friend I need to meet on my way to work, so as far as I’m concerned, I’ll be taking a taxi.”  
“Come on James. Let’s just leave her, we’ve got things to do remember?” Madeleine said, folding her arms as she looked at James expectantly.  
“Of course, love.” He turned back smiling. You wanted to burst out with laughter at that point but left the flat to keep away from the girlfriend that you thought was completely crazy.

***

Technically you lied about seeing a friend, you just wanted some space away from James, especially considering the flat suddenly felt a little more closed in now that the beloved Dr Madeleine Swann had taken over everything inside the flat. For weeks now, you had come in contact with a new friend that you had made. The two of you had spoken constantly to each other and at first it was small talk, just checking in on how each of you were since you met at the bar amongst work colleagues and Jonathan would ask you about how things were with your husband, after he was told about the relationship you had with him. But now there was something more. The two of you spoke more often and the conversations consisted of a lot of sarcastic humour and strange cases that your new friend had been a part of. He recently back to the UK after travelling for months on end with a busy schedule. Though strangely, through your time of talking, you both had never met each other in person after that one occasion. Not that it was a huge problem but you were on different sides of the same town, which seemed very odd. This time round, you were given the offer of going out for a drink out of the blue, after work and so you accepted.

—  
Hey,

Here’s the address. It’s a small pub, no one ever sees it. Try not to accidentally kill anyone on your way, I’d really appreciate it.

I’ll be there by 6.30.

Look forward to seeing you again.

J.

—

You smiled at the message and stepped into a taxi, making your way through London at 6.00 pm. Yes, it was still pretty dark at this time but what the hell? Maybe going out for a drink wasn’t going to be too bad. You looked at the scenery heading into another part of London you hadn’t seen before. Taking in the chance to see the vibrant beaming lights of red, orange, blue everywhere even green and red as Christmas had been approaching sooner. London had turned into a Winter Wonderland. You managed to drive on the iconic London Tower Bridge and past the London eye. In all your time, had you ever had the chance to absorb this much beauty? Unfortunately not. But now was a better time more than anything. You were lost in the scenery, filled with tons of people walking through past each other, the families smiling and laughing together watching the entertainment happening in the centre, the number of couples that walked together hand in hand and even sightseers and tourists on their own just there to view the beauty of the great city there were in.

It wasn’t long until you stopped a couple of minutes away from the pub. It was pretty much both and alternated between time. There were a chain of other restaurants and high street shops, all beaming with different colour lights but you headed further and further down the streets were the lights were slightly more dim and found your place. There was hardly anyone there when you stepped in, there was a certain peaceful ambience about the room. Maybe it was the dimmed down orange/yellow lights inside, maybe it was the few people that were sat together as couples or friends, maybe it was the bar across you that had dark blue lights of its own and music that played fairly quietly to set the mood. You looked around the room, trying to see if there was anyone you would at least recognise, when something caught your eye.

A man sat in the corner, in his own booth, with a pint of beer in front of him was alone, looking at the time on his watch constantly. He had short dark hair: he wore a navy blue shirt under his leather jacket, a pair of black jeans. The man looked impressive and you then knew exactly who this man was.

You moved over to the booth in the corner with a smile on your face. Jonathan instantly rose to his feet smiling and you both shook hands and gave you a kiss on the cheek.

“Well. This is me.” You said.  
“You look a lot better than I even remember.” Jonathan laughed shaking his head and gestured you to sit with him. “I was starting to think you wouldn’t show up.”  
“Don’t you think I’d be a dickhead if I didn’t?”  
“It takes a lot to be one. In my line of work I’ve encountered a lot of them.”

The two of you spoke to each other, with a pint of beer and a few jokes shared with each other. They weren’t forcefully flirtatious, it was natural. They were exactly the same as how you were texting actually. Except the the two of you were more sarcastic.  
“So what made you decide to come here then? Don’t you have cases you need to work on? A flat to get back to?” Jonathan asked.  
“I should be asking you why today out of all days you decided to go for a pint.”  
“Well, work has been intense. I’ve recently come off an investigation and needed to go out. Now, what’s your excuse?”  
“His girlfriend has arrived.”  
“Oh really? I suppose you two are getting on very well.”  
“She’s a fucking nightmare. I hate her. She’s clingy, she’s needy, she’s bossy.”  
“Sounds like one of my exes.” He laughed, “What’s her name?”  
“Oh no, you wouldn’t have met someone like her. I don’t even know what James finds attractive about her in the first place besides her looks, which by the way, I’ve noticed she perfects the resting bitch face.”  
“Oh shit, she perfects the resting bitch face?” Jonathan said instantly surprised, “Have you been stuck with her all week?”  
“It feels like it’s been years, Jon. I’m dying. I wake up in the morning, I hear her giggling from James’ room. I head to the front room, there she is either snogging him in the kitchen-”  
“Now that’s unhygienic.”  
“I know right! She’ll even be lying on the couch half naked or sat on his lap or something the minute I walk into the room with a drink in my hand. I’ve been working like crazy as of late because I’m trying to get away from this bitch who is driving me insane. You know what she did on the second night? I don’t think I told you this, but she decided to change the entire flat around and move my fucking work.” You were beginning to rant even further, unable to control your anger. “She touched my stuff and tried to come up with some bullshit sob story, like she’s God’s fucking gift and because of that James told me to apologise.”  
“He didn’t have your back? Have you tried getting rid of her?”  
“It’s impossible.”  
“All you have to do is fart in her pillow before she sleeps.” He said so seriously that it made you laugh hysterically on the inside.  
“Don’t tell me you’ve tried that before…”  
“Well…back in Afghanistan there were a few people I didn’t like in particular.” He winked. “Don't worry, I stuck horse shit inside their pillow.”  
“Really?”  
“Yep.” He laughed. You had to admit, the man had an infectiously beautiful laugh and a nice smile, one you couldn’t help boring your eyes into.  
“I would say that’s disgusting but you know what? I would do that if I had a horse. But at the moment it does seem impossible not only because of that but because she’s a complete psychopath. She acts as if we’re best friends in front of him but gives me the dodgy looks as if I’m after James. He does know I don’t like him but she assumes everything is a competition in the flat!” He handed you another pint of beer, hearing you rant was entertaining and interesting to him. You were a lot better in person than he thought you were going to be and at times, during the rant, he couldn’t help but laugh at how fuming you actually were. That was when you told your plan to get rid of her. “I have to. I have to do it.”

“Y/N are you high? You said all that about me to him? Even though we haven’t met before, at all?”  
“Yeah. I assume that considering he tells everyone now my secrets, then I thought I’d throw something in about you.”  
“Do you think I’m still a man of action?” He bit his lip smirking.  
“Well that’s a story for another day.” You winked.

After another short while of humorous conversations Jonathan handed you glass mixed with different drinks, a certain experiment for you to take on. The liquid was orange/brown and didn’t look very pleasant. It actually looked quite disgusting.  
“What’s this?” You asked, disturbed.  
“I call it ‘The Promise Drink.’ Sounds magical, clearly its absolutely vile. You said that if I ever met up with you, we would have to share a drink with the following recipe…” He revealed the disgusting contents, different alcoholic beverages proudly.  
“We’re really going to do this?”  
“Hell yes. A promise is a promise. Unless you’re too scared.”  
“Too scared. Please. You’re on.” You tutted and both of you had various shots of the promise drink and by the time that was over, you were both slouched back against the leather chair, trying to keep the drink in your stomach to prove a point.  
“Never again…” You grunted, holding your stomach.  
“Don’t make bets over text that you can’t handle.” Jonathan chuckled, drunkenly.

After a few hours you both walked down the street, waiting for a taxi.

“If you want a place to stay, my place is always open. I promise. In fact, I need other noises rather than cars beeping through the window." He winked, causing to gasp and playfully push him. "What? I was talking about footsteps!"  
"Of course you were!" The both of you looked at each other in silence, then suddenly burst into a fit of laughter.  
"Anyway, let me know how it goes anyway in paradise with the goose doctor and James. I’ll - I’ll uh - call you tomorrow. It was nice meeting you.”  
“You too Jonathan.” You smiled and gave him a small hug, well tried to hold onto him to stop yourself from hurling that putrid drink on the floor.

 

You made it back to the flat late, smiling to yourself. Jonathan really had made your week, if finally meeting him in person wasn’t enough, the fact that he knew how to show you a good time made things even better. By the time you were inside, you noticed it was slightly dark with dim lights.  
How much did you want to bet yourself Madeleine and James were on the couch right now, having a ‘moment.’ You rolled your eyes as you stepped further and found James sat alone on the couch. This was odd. You hadn’t see him alone ever since the previous week.

“You’ve been out late.” He smiled looking at his glass.  
“Went out for a drink a friend.” You said as you put your jacket away. “Where is she?”  
“Asleep in the bedroom.” He said dully, there was something about his tone or the way he sat still on the couch, looking down that made you sense something was wrong. But you decided to brush it off and not bother.  
“Cool. Well I’m going to go to bed. I’ll see you -”  
“Y/N.” He cut you off quickly, “We need to talk…”

You stopped yourself from moving and turned around slowly. He was now stood in front of you, slightly closer than expected.  
“I’ve hardly had the chance to speak to you as of late and there’s something we need to discuss. ” You could smell the whiskey from his lips, that was how close you were as you squinted in confusion.  
“Discuss what?”

The two of you were interrupted by Madeleine, who stood at James’ bedroom door. You rolled your eyes and looked down at your feet, when Bond instantly turned around.  
“James? What’s going on in there?”  
“Nothing.”  
“Nothing? Good. Because I need you here.”  
“Yes? I’m coming.”

The next day you made it home by the evening and sat down at the desk, already beginning to work on your forms for cases when Madeleine walked through the hall, glaring at you. She sat down at the table in front of you, wearing James’ robe, with that resting bitch face look on her. She studied your face for a moment as you looked back at her, in a hostile manner.

“So you and James? How long have you been staying here?”  
“Almost a year.” You ended the conversation quickly and turned back to your work when she continued, you rolled your eyes knowing she had to speak. “And in that year you two have developed quite the friendship.”  
“Yep.” You put emphasis on the ‘p’, still failing to acknowledge her presence.  
“That’s long enough for a man to start sleeping with a woman he’s been living closely to.”  
“Look, Margret-”  
“Madeleine! My name is Madeleine!” She practically screamed at you. She wanted a reaction but you just sat there smiling.  
“Still not seeing the difference there…But if you’re insinuating that I’ve slept with James then you must be lost in a completely different planet because I would never sleep with someone I’ve just met and have no attraction to him whatsoever.”  
“But you haven’t just met him though.” She said forcefully, “You’ve known him for almost a year! And I see the way you look at him,”  
“Like I normally would with anyone else?”  
“No! I see that you desperately want him but he’s mine!”

You ignored her, still working on your form because this was getting ridiculous in all honesty. She just couldn’t stop asking questions and forcing statements onto you.  
“Have you shared a bed with him or seen him naked? Even for a minute?”  
“No. That would be weird.” You said in a ‘matter of fact’ tone.  
She refused to believe you, and you were a good liar because in fact you had done one of those things.  
“You slept with him! I know you did! You better keep back from my man or else I will unpick you bit by bit. I know how to put a gun together.” She said moving closer to you this time. You finally looked up at her in a ridiculed manner.

“And I know which part of the body is crucial in the movement, responses and communication that goes on in everyday activity. I know how to dislocate a shoulder simply by pressing the right bones and how to completely paralyse a person with one move. Your point is?” For a moment she was silent as you filled the tension and turned back to your paper, “You’re not very smart when it comes to reading people, neither are you as mindful as you were about feng-shui. Then again, I started to sense negativity the minute you walked into this flat…”  
“You were wearing his shirt. I should’ve known James had been living with a slut! First you sleep with your husband’s best friend, go out sleeping with many other men while he’s away working, then your flatmate while you are still married…” She stood up and grabbed your cup of coffee, spilling it all over your work and that was it…  
“YOU’RE DEAD!” You leapt from your chair as James walked in and you tackled her to the ground, you were about to strike her when James rushed to the both of you and tried to pull you off but you were ridiculously strong and suddenly your hand jerked back and punched James in the nose.  
“Y/N!” He shouted as you stood up and realised what you had done. But you didn’t care. The minute James helped Madeleine to her feet, you raced past him and launched straight for her face, successfully connecting. James didn’t care about his nose bleed, he wanted you out of the room and quickly lifted you up into the kitchen, hearing things shatter. Madeleine broke down into tears as she looked at the floor, “I can’t believe she would do something like this! All I did was ask her how was her day at work and then she started getting angry at me!” She finally looked up noticing the blood, “My gosh! Your nose! It’s! Baby, are you okay? I should’ve noticed!”

“No no! Madeleine it’s fine! Just leave me.” He stepped back. “I’ll try and get her under control, just clean yourself up, I’ll see you in a minute,”  
“SHE FUCKING DID IT AGAIN!” You screamed at him, pacing back and forth in the kitchen.  
“Y/N! That is enough! You have been an absolute nightmare in this flat! I can’t believe you would treat Madeleine like this! To think, you and I were friends!”  
You didn’t care at this point in time, just as he tried to grab your wrist, you connected a strike right to James’ jaw. He rushed back in disbelief, watching you stand with your fists balled. That feeling of being angered, the walls closing in on the both of you came to life once again and you weren’t able to handle this.  
“For a man who works for British Intelligence, you aren’t so intelligent are you? In fact you’re a fucking hypocrite! You want to say how you thought WE were friends? Let me get this straight! For the past few months I started to feel comfortable in this flat! Like I actually lived inside it! If you wanted me to answer any of your questions, I always answered them without a care in the world thinking you’d keep whatever we spoke about inside this flat! I thought I could trust you! I THOUGHT that you would have my back, you promised me you would!”  
“How would you know what friends do? You’ve hardly treated anyone here with any decency!”  
“You fucking-”  
“You need to go back in there and apologise to Madeleine right now! She did nothing wrong!” He shouted as he stood closer to you.  
“I’m not fucking apologising to her for ruining my work and calling me all sorts of names under the sun. You’re so BLIND you can’t see how she’s controlling you James!”  
“No. It’s you who’s controlling! Not her! You treat her like shit all the time, it’s disgusting! She could press charges for this sort of shit!”  
“I hope she does! I’d rather be in a shithole like prison than stuck with the both of you watching you behave a lot more than just half your age!” You stormed past James and nudged him, but this time he followed you towards your room. Madeleine stepped out and watched James shout, after all he knew she was there with her eyes on him.  
“You know what? Someone has to leave this flat. We can’t have the place like this all the time! It’s like a bloody war zone here!” He said but you slammed the door shut in front of him before he could step inside your room and sat on your bed infuriated.

The next morning had hit and James woke up with Madeleine relaxed on his chest. After the previous night’s incident he felt a sudden sharp pain in both his jaw and his nose, still bruising and hurting. You knew how to make a hit last for hours and fought as if you were a professional mixed martial artist. He heard footsteps and wanted to move, yet he knew something was up. He waited for a moment and heard some serious shuffling from the other side but didn’t want to wake Madeleine up, especially when she had her hands over him all the time. She moved to one side finally and that allowed James to sneak out of the bed slowly. He threw on a t-shirt and walked down the hall to find your room completely clear. No posters, no post-it notes, nothing. He continued to move down to find that your chemistry set wasn’t there on the dining table, which was really odd. He found the papers that were stained with coffee completely gone…and a pile of suitcases on the side of the door. You walked through the kitchen, dressed and ready to leave.

Bond looked at you completely stunned, “What’s going on? What are you doing?”  
“What does it look like I’m doing? You said it yourself last night, someone should leave the flat because it’s a warzone here. I’m leaving Bond….”

Bond. Now that’s how he knew you were being serious, just by the calling of his last name. He stood in disbelief by the response you gave him….

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a way to go! I hope you've enjoyed the madness of this chapter as there is still more to come! Hang in there! Also, I know the spam is intense, it is coming to a close now!


	7. Hard headed or very naive?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two weeks have passed since the incident at the shared flat with James’ and now the reader is trying to pick up the pieces and move on when she is suddenly questioned on her stubborn nature. In an act to remain bold - are the walls breaking down in front of the one person who shows concern?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The spam is coming to a close, but I hope you're enjoying all of this so far! Sorry there’s a little less James in this one. There have been changes made in comparison to the preview as I’ve decided to shift things around. Again, Jonathan is an actor or character of your choice! Looks like James may have some competition!

It had been three weeks since you left the nightmare situation at your shared flat with James, just as you were about to call it that anyway. In all honesty, things had been looking up. You spent your time in a hotel near central London. It wasn’t as extravagant, suited to James and Madeleine’s touch. It was affordable but was something that now may have caused you to dip into your savings for the duration of your stay. Your phone had remained switched off for over a week now and you kept yourself in a small, comfortable bubble. The hotel room you stayed in was nothing much, there was a bed, a chest of drawers for your clothes and a window, facing the building of a brick wall on the other side. It was a budget hotel, what could you say? You could’ve stayed with your ‘husband’, if you should call him that, although he was out of the country on important affairs with M, leaving him upset that he couldn’t do something about your situation. He even offered you his house key, although you made it clear that you did not want to intrude. No one else at work knew the struggle you were facing either.

But at least you could finally breathe. At least you were no longer in a toxic environment. Every morning so far you woke up in a slightly better mood than you had felt in weeks. Although, there was no denying that you missed your bed at the flat, or being able to have a kitchen where you could make your own coffee and you missed being able to have someone to talk to. Aside from James’ curiosity running wild all the time, you missed his quirky advances, his flirtatious behaviour, the only man that could tolerate your level of sarcasm since Q and then try to comeback with something similar…Somehow, you missed him.

Alas, he was in the past now. He had not contacted you at all and as you had packed all your things there was no reason for you to go back to the flat. It was clear he made his choice the moment Madeleine revealed to you all the secrets you shared with him. Of course, he chose to defend her. She was always in the right. She was always going to be in the right. The past remained in the past and James was not your concern anymore.

When you switched on your phone to check the time, you had been bombarded with messages from your family, some of your friends but none of them were from him. Of course none of them would have been from him. You were forced out of your dazed state when your phone buzzed violently against the nightstand of your small room. Someone had tried to call you.

Quickly, you pulled your phone up and found yourself alerted by a voicemail from Jonathan. You listened to the voicemail, his voice suddenly comforting your state of panic.

“Good morning Y/N. I thought it would be better to call you rather than text…I um, just wanted to check up on you seeing as I haven’t heard from you since we last met up, I hope everything is alright. Hopefully you’re alive and well - we both know it would be a shame if that wasn’t the case because of a certain someone.” He chuckled nervously. Just hearing the anxiousness in his voice made you beam with happiness. “Or I really hope I haven’t put you off me entirely with my promise drink. Though, it was a part of the bet so we’re both accountable for that. Anyway, don’t mind me - I’m just blabbing on. I also wanted to say I’m sorry that I couldn’t contact you sooner, work had been keeping my busy but maybe if you’re free, we could go out for some tea or coffee? Whichever you prefer. Just drop me a message if you’re up for it. Bye.”

This man made you feel differently to Q and James altogether. He made you smile from the moment you came across him. Jonathan had been caring all these months he had known you and witty and funny and even spontaneous - all at the same time. He tolerated your constant rants and supported you when you didn’t expect him to. How was he so courteous in the mornings over text as well? By night, he was a cheeky, flirtatious and sarcastic man who understood your sense of humour! The atmosphere was definitely different to Bond, which was nice for a change. Not to get started by his looks too…He was so handsome! The man never pressured you into talking about your husband or attempted to be intrusive. He was simply fun and easy to talk to and you could’ve done with seeing him to cheer you up. He was what you needed right now.

-

Hey, I’m alive and I’m down for a drink! Don’t worry, it’s going to take a lot more than one disgusting drink to keep me away! (:

-

Within seconds, Jonathan responded. Clearly he wasn’t afraid to make it known that he had been waiting for you.

-

Thank goodness you’re alive! But oh. I do love a challenge. ;)

Let’s say we meet at 10.30? I could send you the address or pick you up?

J.

-

It was sweet of him to offer picking you up, although you hadn’t told him about your current state and wouldn’t want to burden him with the revelation either, You both agreed on a time and place and now it was time to get ready. There was something about this man, he saw you on a couple of occasions without make-up on, even in your worst state yet this time round you wanted to make an effort for him. The least you could do is at least make yourself look half decent to meet up with the handsome man you befriended. So you opted for a white blouse and navy blue jeans to compliment it, with very little makeup so you don’t like like you haven’t slept in months, which had been the case.

Once you arrived at the small café, which was 45 minutes away now that you didn’t stay in central London but you weren’t going to tell Jonathan that, you scanned the cosy place. He messaged you when he had arrived early, while you had still been on your way there. The look on his face was worry. He was looking around for you and it was very clear he had been doing so. Eventually, his eyes met yours and the worry vanished. A smile emerged as he rose to his feet quickly.

The man wore a burgundy sweatshirt with a pair of black jeans this time that fit perfectly around his lean physique. His hair was slightly unkempt and it was clear he had been growing his stubble out. You made your way to him and were caught in a warming embrace. It had been the third time you met this man in person but over the past few months, the two of you felt as though you had known each other much longer. You weren’t one for much contact either but with Jonathan, you were definitely willing to let that slide.

“Thank goodness you’re here. For some weird reason I always think you’re going to stand me up.”  
“Well sadly, I’m still alive.”  
He quickly held his hand over his chest, where his heart was, “Oh no! I’ve been burdened with this fierce yet beautiful being! What ever will I do?” His theatrical tone caused you to laugh, something you hadn’t done in a long while. You realise how long you’ve been standing before him, looking up at his observant smile. You hadn’t known that he had been noting to himself how much he had missed and loved your laugh. Soon you cleared your throat and looked towards the seats.  
“Maybe we should-”  
“Oh right! Yes Ma’am!” Jonathan quickly answered. He pulled your seat back and took another small bow, “My lady.”

Once the giggles were aside, you both looked at what was on the menu. Your eyes kept to the menu and avoided his own and he noticed that from the silence.

“So, Y/N, how have you been? Is everything alright at the flat?”  
“Mhm. All fine.” You quickly mumbled, burying yourself in the menu. “Full English seems nice. Maybe a vanilla laté - but an earl grey seems nice too.”  
“I’m with you on the earl grey - you seem a bit funny today, is there something you want to tell me, love?”

Oh. The term of endearment caught you off guard. He’s said it before in a joking manner but this time it felt more meaningful. You were not going to tell him you were technically homeless. You just weren’t going to do that to him.

“Nope. Not really. How large do you think the portions are?” Jonathan shook his head, giving a sad smile. “Look, I’m fine. Just feeling really peckish today - that’s all.”  
“Right.”  
You had to control the situation before he could enquire any further. “How has work been for you anyway? Didn’t you say you were off to Thailand like last month?”  
“I did, thought I was going to have a blast, turns out it was otherwise. I just happened to get caught in a shitload of meetings with the Chief of Staff and other agency boards, I would’ve enjoyed it much more if I were in some pub competing against you in a drinking competition.”  
“Which you would lose, might I add.”  
“Don’t get too ahead of yourself, dear. I’ll have you know I’m still sober after twelve drinks.”

Before you could retort anything else, the waitress came to your table and asked for the order. Once your meal arrived, you dived straight in, desperately trying to avoid Jonathan’s eyes. Jonathan continued to look at you with the same sad smile he had before. You noticed and stopped eating.

“You’re not going to give up on this are you?” You sighed.  
“Not a chance in hell. Y/N, you don’t have to feel like you can’t tell me anything.”  
“It’s not that simple.”  
“Well I’m not going anywhere and I’m here to listen, so we’re stuck here until someone starts talking.” He sat back and folded his arms.  
“Alright.” You huffed, “I’m only telling you this so you can stop staring at me. I left the flat a couple of weeks ago and have been staying in a hotel ever since. I don’t have anywhere else to live but that is not a problem because I am in the process of trying to find somewhere else to live! So don’t even bother worrying about me.” You casually shrug and sipped your tea.

The look on Jonathan’s face was what you didn’t expected. Usually he was so calm, but right now he seemed hurt - angered by the news. “What?! You could’ve just messaged me so I could take you to my place! I told you that my flat is always open for you!”  
“I don’t want to impose. You have a busy life and having me around isn’t going to end well.” You laughed and shook your head. Truth be told, you found these weeks hard. You looked down and scratched your head and you hadn’t known where this had come from but you felt your tears starting to well.  
“It’s been hard - hasn’t it?” His hand moved slowly to your arm, as if asking for permission before he could touch you.  
You looked up and laughed, “So hard. But I’m going to be alright because I’m going to find me somewhere to live, even if it does mean moving out of London and finding another job.” You sighed.  
“It does not have to come to that. I won’t let that happen.” Jonathan said earnestly. “Which hotel have you been staying at?” You gave him the name. “That’s just outside of central London! Did you walk here?”  
“Hey, it wasn’t that bad!”  
“Let’s finish up, we’re going.” He said, quickly finishing his earl grey.  
“What? Why? Where are we going?”  
“To check you out of that gloomy hotel you’ve been staying in and move your bags to my place.”  
“Oh no.” You laughed, “No, no, no. That is not happening. I said I’m fine on my own.”  
“Look at you Y/N! You aren’t happy! Sometimes I wonder if your stubbornness is actually getting you anywhere or if you’re too hard-headed to realise where that attitude has gotten you? No one ever said you can’t ask for help and I made it very clear to you that I am always available for you.” The silence between you two was tense for a brief moment, it was clear Jonathan was not having it. “Let’s go. You’ll thank me later for this.”

You were hopeless in your attempts to fight back and now you had your bags outside the hotel and noticed Jonathan stood outside his car, waiting. He smiled once again and helped you carry your bags into the back, like the gentleman he always was. Once you both sat together, he looked at you as though he had been meaning to ask something but had been restrained.  
“He didn’t…he didn’t kick you out - did he?”  
“Oh no! I left on my own accord. There was a fight, it got messy and someone had to leave, so I volunteered to go.”  
“Good, because if you need me to show him I’m the man of action you say I am, I am more than willing to do so.” He winked before starting the car and the playful mood was back.

The two of you eventually arrived at his flat. You realised that this man had a lot to him. For someone who often wore jeans and a t-shirt or a leather jacket and with the casual car he drove, he liked to hide the fact that he had one hell of a home. Right in the heart of London, on the top floor, his flat was modernised with greys, silvers, blacks and red. The view of the city was the first thing you saw entering his home from the large window and similarly to a penthouse design, the living space was much larger than James’ own, yet somehow much cosier. There was more furniture to it and a fireplace in front of it all.

“Welcome to my humble abode. Or as they say, mi casa es su casa.” He casually said as he carried your bags into the front space.  
This man had been living it large all along and there was no way you could ever guess that from his demeanour. The rough man you know to wear even casual clothing at a smart dress event, had owned an extravagant, beautifully designed home. It was remarkable.

Maybe you did have to thank him for this after all…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The man appears quiet and humble but once the house is in, he's surprising everyone! Will the reader start breaking down the walls for Jonathan? More to come!


	8. Anything you need...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Weeks have passed since the incident at the shared flat with James’ and now the reader is trying to pick up the pieces and move on when she is suddenly questioned on her stubborn nature. Now at Jonathan’s house, the reader starts to enjoy the little things that she couldn’t in Bond’s presence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, Jonathan is the man of your choosing! I really hope you enjoy this! Sorry there hasn’t been much of James, he will be making his return very soon. You might notice? For now, let’s enjoy the smooth operator known as Jonathan welcoming Y/N into the new home!

“Aww hello!” You called. A German Shepard puppy raced towards you and barked instantly, dropping a tennis ball before you. He nuzzled it once more by your foot, then leapt up onto your leg, playfully barking.  
“Oi! Duke stop that!” Jonathan called as he quickly pulled the ball away from you and tried to lure the dog towards him. “I’m really sorry, he gets seriously playful whenever there’s a guest in the house. Duke, come on, be a good boy and leave the lovely lady alone.”  
Duke continued puffing then dashed towards Jonathan, who raised Duke up in his arms, and held him close. The overhyped dog licked his face then remained still, panting with his tongue hanging out.  
“I’m really sorry about that. Duke gets really overexcited. I should’ve warned you about the dog. Are you alright with them?”  
“I love dogs!” You grinned happily, tempted to lean in and hug the happy pup.  
How could this man get sweeter? He had a dog! “Got him from the rescue shelter, he wasn’t in a good way, very timid at first but now, he can’t seem to get enough of being playful. I have no idea how he manages to keep all this energy.” And he did get better. “I’ll show you to your room.”

You followed him around the beautifully designed home, there was something about it that was warming. Maybe it was the fireplace that had been glowing in the distance, or the couches that you made you keep a note on where you may find yourself most comfortable in this place, if you could even do that.

Then you noticed that beside the television there was a photograph of him with a woman when he was younger. His hair was tousled, he was completely clean shaven, bright eyes that were clear through the faded picture. He wore a teal blue shirt, that was slightly unbuttoned and he was pulling a face, leaning into the woman under his arm. She was slim, blonde hair with a smile on her face. She looked far more attractive and from how close they were, maybe you thought it was his girlfriend, resembling a model if you could even say that. The two were very close, you could tell with the way she pressed against him. He never mentioned being in a relationship nor did he mention being single either. 

Before you could deal with the internal questioning he opened the door to your room, still with the pup in his arm and your backpack over his shoulder. “And this is your quarters, my lady.” He said with a small smirk. That smirk was going to be the death of you, but you weren’t going to say anything about him. Definitely do not give him the satisfaction for it at least.

Your room was fairly large and goodness, it looked comfortable. This was much different to the one you had in your shared flat with James. It had a large double bed and a slick, modern touch to it once again, with a view of the city.  
“Is this alright?” He suddenly asked, and by the time you turned around you could see him wait with nervous anticipation.  
“This is - it’s great. I feel like I’m seriously imposing now.” You sighed, scratching your head.  
“Of course you are.” Jonathan retorted. “Me and Duke were gonna have a lads night in until you ruined it.” He winked and let out a small chuckle. You rolled your eyes and set your bags inside with Jonathan behind you. He set Duke back down and the excited pup wandered his way out of the room so Jonathan could help set your bags beside the wardrobe. You realised you had been silent for quite a while and Jonathan had clearly noticed but he hadn’t wanted to point it out. He helplessly smiled, realising how close the two of you stood to each other. “Um, so if you need anything my room is down the hall, sometimes I’m in the study, it depends. Don’t be afraid to give me a shout. Any questions, just ask. Sometimes you’ll hear something smash, that’s just the bloody poltergeist that used to live here. He did have a really violent death.”  
“Excuse me the what? You are joking. You have to be.”  
“No. He used to own the building, died after having his throat slit. Cheated on his wife for another woman who lived in this building like ten years ago. Yes it was quite nasty, that.” He said slowly, looking down with a serious face. “Oh well. He’s not gonna kill any of us, just make his presence known.” He shrugged casually.  
“His name was Tom."  
"That’s bullshit.” You said, squinting your eyes.  
“You want to see what he looked like then?”  
“Yes.” You folded your arms. He brought out his phone and showed a photograph of the name with the exact name, outside a building with his children twenty years ago.  
“The fuck is this...?” Your eyes widened as you looked at the photograph then the attached article, everything he said was correct. There was a silence, then suddenly he burst into laughter.  
“His name was Tom Foolery.” A smirk emerged from his lips, which caused him to be struck with a playful slap to the arm. “Ow!” He chuckled. “I didn’t think you would believe me!”  
“I knew you were lying the moment you said poltergeist. Anyway, who the hell is that then?!”  
“I don’t know. There’s no bloody poltergeist here. If you hear a crash it’s Duke probably dropping something. He does that sometimes in the middle of the night. When he does that and if I’m not around, try teaching him to stay away from the kitchen, he’s still learning. Anyway I’ll leave you to it, I imagine you’ve had enough of me for now. I’ve got a phone call to make.”

He left the room and you inside it. You dropped onto the bed for a moment and let out a long sigh. This bed is bloody comfortable, you thought. Though you couldn’t help smiling, maybe you were going to enjoy your time here after all.

After a couple of hours settling down, you made your way into the living room that was adjacent to the kitchen, to smell something deliciously pleasant behind you. As you turned around you heard playing in the background as you found Jonathan with a towel over his shoulder and see him frying food at the pan. It brought you memories of your time with James, that one time he cooked for you and when Q interfered. You couldn’t help but smirk at that thought, it was a painfully humorous evening. There were few of them like that with James as time grew on and the more Madeleine stayed. You silently scolded yourself for even thinking about him.  
“Ah. Y/N, why don’t you come round here. I want to show you something.” As you made your way down, you couldn’t help eyeing the television once more, seeing that photograph and how happy he looked. Jonathan had aged really well if this was his very much younger years. Now he was well defined, with a beard that had been growing out and his hair well taken care of.   
“Try this.” He said, dipping a small teaspoon into the pot of sauce and handed it to you.  
“I’m not going to get food poisoning am I? Because I intend on living until I’m past thirty. I know - I know it’s a surprise but a pleasant one at least!”  
“I thought you liked testing the waters?”  
“And I would’ve thought you’d have more creative ways to kill someone. I’m a sucker for a cup of tea or some ice cream, why couldn’t you have poisoned that?”  
“I’ll take notes for next time, darling.” He winked.  
“Is this going to poison me?” You said, not moving the spoon an inch closer to your lips. “You know what? Fuck it.” You shrugged, slowly moving the spoon to your lips and leaving the spoon linger in between your lips longer, causing Jonathan to cock his head to the side slightly, observantly taking in your reaction. “You said you never cook at home, right?”  
“I said I’m never around enough to cook and there’s no one I can cook for. Big difference.” He said casually, his eyes moved towards the spoon before he quickly looked up and shrugged.   
“Why don’t we get drinks. How do you feel about Ben Nevis? I’m a sucker for some quality scotch.” He said, making his way towards the cupboard and pulled out the bottle.

Once you had eaten your delicious meal, specially prepared by Jonathan might you add, the two of you both cleared the table and got to washing up. He tried hard to keep you away from doing anything but your stubbornness is the reason you stuck around. The two of you shared a laugh with each other now and again, something you never thought would happen especially with Jonathan.

You made your way to the guest room once you had finished, leaving Jonathan to place back the rest of the plates. You took in the view of the beautiful scene at your disposal. Colourful lights below, all similarly to dots driving through the road, while a dark blanket covered the sky above. 

It had been like that for the next week under your stay with Jonathan. He had been caring enough to look out for you. You both helped each other with breakfast and supper with him and watching late nights films together. Soon that had to end and you would have to go back to work after you spent the last three nights away from work. Currently, you found yourself staring at your chemistry set, wondering what to do with it. Back at the old flat, you were able to work in your own comfort zone as you knew you were paying to stay in the flat and in your space. But in this case you weren’t and everything here looked more expensive than your yearly salary alone. As much as he said it was your home just as much as his, you knew for a fact this was solely his home. He paid for it, no matter how much you tried to offer him your share and promised him that you would be out of his way, that was not the case with him. He strongly refused, telling you that his apartment was big enough for more than the two of you and this was barely any trouble for him.

The time was 2.00 am and you had to get back to work but the downpour outside kept you awake. Suddenly, your phone buzzed. On the screen appeared a name, one that caused your tossing and turning to stop immediately.

-  
Y/N, we need to talk.

James  
-  
The sight of the message caused you to roll your eyes immediately. There was no way you were going to talk to talk to him. You couldn’t, at least not yet. The anger that seeped from within towards him and the betrayal he caused couldn’t be stopped. There was only one way you could de-stress yourself and that was to take a shower. You took a shower and once you were comfortable in just a tank top and shorts, you made your way to the kitchen to make yourself a drink when on your way you stopped to find a light shining from a room beside you.

Tea first. That’s what you needed. Once you were successful, you made your way back down the hall, when you found the light still shining. The door was left slightly unhinged and you could see a figure, probably Jonathan, looking down at something. From what you could see, he was in a white t shirt and his hair was slightly tousled but it only made him look better.   
“You know you don’t have to hide behind that door.” The velvet voice said behind the door, instantly catching you off guard.  
You slowly opened the door raising an eyebrow. “Was I that loud?”  
“Let’s just say there’s a reason why you would make an awful spy.” He gestured to the seat before him.   
“What’s that?” You knew parts about Jonathan’s job. All you knew was he spent time in Afghanistan as a soldier, then worked with intelligence through a private branch. There were a lot of things you hadn’t known about this man and his job was the biggest one of them all. He travelled around the world and stated that when the real operatives failed, he had to step forward and get the job done, which essentially is what left him with all that he has today, as you may guess.  
“It’s just something for work. They want me to go to Geneva this time. Turns out an agent from MI6 has failed to capture a potential threat and they want me to investigate the mess.” He scratched his head, “I’ll have to head off in a couple of days.”

The small nod surprised him. Not even a response left your lips. You fiddled with your fingers, suddenly alarmed by the fact that you felt his eyes bore into you. At this point in time, all you could think of was him. He didn’t have the right to just instantly message you like that. Why did he choose now? When you were just managing to forget about him and appreciate your time here, as much as your mind challenged the whole living situation.  
“Y/N?”  
“Oh right. Yes, Geneva sounds great. I hope you have a great time.” Your eyes lit up, if there was a time to escape before getting attached, it had to be now. “That’s great timing anyway. While you’re gone, I’ll be able to pack my bags-”  
“Wait - pack? Where?” His eyes widened quickly and he reached his hand forward, immediately stopping you from moving any further. “Hold on. I need you to breathe, love.”   
You stopped talking and did as he asked, noting the worry that shot into his eyes. He seemed like a deer in headlights. Though these terms of endearment were going to be the death of you.  
“Talk to me. What’s up?”  
“Look, I don’t want to be negative or anything but this? This isn’t right.” You huffed, “I shouldn’t be here, Jon. I should be out there finding myself somewhere else to live. The only reason I am here, and let’s be honest, it’s because you felt so much pity for me that you had to do something and I’m going to be honest, I don’t do sympathy. I can’t do sympathy. I don’t want it. As much as you want to call this my home just as much it is your home, that can’t happen because this can’t be my home I didn’t pay for anything here. I’m practically just a wet blanket around this place. You’re cool and all, I like you and I have never been this far with anyone but I feel like now’s the time the fun ends.”  
He sat forward with his hand over his mouth, something that you knew only a man like him would do when he was annoyed or trying to figure something out. However, you couldn’t tell which one it was.  
“Where’s this coming from? I thought you liked it here.” It took a second for him to piece the puzzle. “He’s contacted you - hasn’t he?”  
“It’s nothing to do with that.”

The man rose from his seat and made his way towards you, leaning against the surface of his desk. The reading glasses he donned you could not lie, made him look more attractive than you expected him to be but you realised, not now. You couldn’t let those ideas come in now. He stepped casually towards the other side of the desk, right in front of you and at this moment in time you could finally take his figure in. There have been moments now and again where you found yourself coming close to him but it wasn’t like this. The tension in the air lingered between the two of you - unless you were the only one who could sense it.

“Do you like being here?” He asked, folding his arms with an observant look on his face.  
“I - It’s not about whether I like being here or not.” You sighed helplessly.  
“Well that’s a shame because I have enjoyed your company a lot here these past few days.” He leaned forward and reached for your hand, “And just so you know this goes beyond missing one lads night in with Duke. I enjoy it being a night in, just me and you, drinking and watching every single ridiculous film possible and criticising it while drunk. I don’t know about you but I’ve loved being around you - the sarcastic, stupidly stubborn woman before me.”  
“Yes I’ve enjoyed being around her too.” You mumbled with a smirk.  
“See!” He chuckled lightly. “Come on, tell me something. If you really didn’t want to be here, why did you stay so long? Because you’d feel bad for me? Or is it something else?” He slowly reached for your hand and pulled you to him. There was a silence between you two, before he pulled you close. Subconsciously, you interlocked your fingers with his, moving closer.  
“Let’s go to somewhere.” He said.  
“I’d like to say I like your thinking but where on earth are you planning to go?” You pulled your head back, confused.  
“Anywhere, after this. A holiday. Somewhere away from work. Get so fucking drunk and have such a wild time that when we come back maybe you’ll feel differently about what home feels like. We can get to know each other. Nothing better than friends having fantastic bloody time abroad. What happens in Geneva, stays in Geneva sort of thing.”  
“Isn’t that a bit spontaneous - even for you?”  
“It depends on how you look at it. This is an opportunity to go anywhere and I know, Miss Independent, you want to pay for something on your own but that's not happening this time. I don’t want to stop you from being you but I also want you to move away from money troubles. Being honest, I just want you to have a break from all you've been through these past few weeks and if I could take you, it would be my absolute pleasure.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The spam is now over! It'll probably take a while for another chapter but I really hope you enjoyed this one! Jonathan treating the reader is something special but also, what the hell happened in Geneva?


	9. "Just trust me..."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As a way of helping cope with the troubles you’ve faced for the last two months, Jonathan decides to treat you to a holiday to Geneva and it is a well deserved break. A holiday with a hunk you like to drink with? What could possibly go wrong?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think this chapter is as great as it could have been, I'm going to be honest. There is a little Night Manager reference...If any of you get the hint. ;) But other than that, I literally like tried to rack my brains into coming up with something as it was a little struggle! But hey, we're still here loving Jonathan (the actor of your choice) He is out to impress the reader, hoping he is deemed worthy of their friendship! Of course while all this is happening...where is are certain characters? You'll find out soon! I really hope you enjoy this chapter!

The two of you sat in a train cabin, heading for the airport in Ireland after stopping for a connection flight to Geneva. During this time, you enjoyed the idea of going abroad with a friend as you hadn’t been abroad in years, maybe this was the well deserved break you were looking for after all. However, the handsome gentleman across you still left you with doubts ever since you decided to accept his offer. It did take you a few days and he was patient with you, then when you told him you would be joining you, he was elated.You hadn’t seen a man this way since your dear ‘husband’ had gotten married to you.

Oh yes. You forgot to tell Jonathan you were married. That conversation had still yet to be discussed, but your excuse was that you didn’t feel like you owed him anything. You knew the man for months and had been talking to him - hell you now can say that you’ve lived with him, but there was still a part of you that felt you didn’t know him that well enough to tell him everything about yourself. Especially after what happened with James. There was no way you were willing to let your guard down that easily.

“... I mean you think we know each other well but as far as I’m concerned, I’m currently on a train with a stranger, that I happen to live with, who could possibly shoot me.”  
“First of all, shoot you? We wouldn’t even make it past the airport if I had possession of a firearm.” Jonathan retorted with his hand on his heart, posing with an offended face. “Secondly, I am offended you think I would do such a thing after spending all this money on the trip and with the money I plan to spend during it to!”  
“Aren’t you meant to be going to work on this trip? Surely you’d get all expenses paid, accommodation, transport, everything else you need wherever you go abroad?” You remarked.  
“Excuse me, I will have you know that I paid for this accommodation-”  
“Did you now?”  
“Yes Ma’am, I can confirm I did so you will be left very impressed with what I have to offer!” Jonathan chuckled as he sipped on his cup of earl grey.  
“Like with the fact you hid from me that you live in a freaking penthouse that is larger than the house I grew up in?”  
“I don’t go around saying that, especially to the women. I’d rather have them believing I’m a man of mystery.” He smirked proudly, causing you to subtly swoon over this man’s confidence. His cockiness was subdued and often made you laugh as he wasn’t the man to often talk that way when it came to women. “Look, in all honesty I just want you to trust me. I want you to know I won’t do anything that could potentially harm you or hurt your feelings. This trip is about having a good time, not for you to trust me less than you already do. Can we try working on that?”

Oh the sincere look got to you. You were both silent for a moment, before his eyebrows arched and his lips grew into a large grin. “Besides, you already have to live with me, it wouldn’t do you any harm to at least get along with your flatmate this time.”  
“Fine.” You rolled your eyes and playfully huffed. “If that’s what it takes, I guess I can make something work.”

The journey had only gotten better after that. You both flew in business class, and had time to read, talk to each other. Eventually, your eyelids grew heavy and you found course slumping your head on his shoulder.  
"You alright there?" He chuckled as he turned his attention from his book to you."  
"I'm sorry, I'm tired."  
"No it's fine, you don't have to move. Keep it like that. I wouldn't want you sleeping uncomfortable."  
In all honesty, hadn’t minded, he was comfortable as long as you were beside him.

When you had both arrived to Geneva it was 11.30 pm and you were extremely exhausted after the long day of travelling. All you wanted to do was to get to the hotel and sleep until the next midday. That also reminded you, what did Jonathan have in mind when he said he had dealt with the accommodation? You were not fussy, but you were hoping he would not pull a stunt and try to book one bedroom because that would not end well. Especially considering he was trying to gain your trust and not lose it. This time your guard was staying up. He was not going to knock this down.

You were in complete awe at the beautiful city at night. The thousands of beaming lights from the houses and hotels, you could even see the lake in all its beauty and the faint outlines of the mountains in the midnight blue sky. The new fresh air made you sigh happily as Jonathan helped you with your bags into the taxi. You couldn’t help but smile at him. If this place was a complete magical place at night, imagine how captivating it was during the day. You had always dreamt of going skiing in the Swiss Alps travelling through Lake Geneva. Never had you thought there was a chance this could happen.

Neither were you prepared for the surprise you faced from Jonathan when you arrived at your hotel. It was a large chalet, vibrantly shining before you. Jonathan could see the smile on your face and was in awe by your fascination at that moment. He faced a warm feeling now seeing that you were excited, even though you did a good job of keeping composed.

The night manager stood at the counter smiling upon your arrival. “Good evening, I am the Night Manager, at your service.”  
“Hello, I have a reservation under Harrington.” Jonathan stated.  
“Harrington. Ah, we have been expecting you Mr. Harrington, you have booked the best room we have to offer. The Lake Geneva suite, five star quality, I’ll just grab the keys and show you to your room.”  
The three of you made your way to the room together. Jonathan turned to you, seeing that you had your eyebrow raised and your arms folded. A reminder of the conversation you had on the plane, based on a joke about having a secretly prestigious background. The man turned to you and whispered, “It’s the name I have to use from the company. I know you’re looking at me as if I’m related to royalty, I swear to God I am not. My surname is far from it.” 

Even with his breath against your ear, a tingling sensation emerged quickly. You know it was wrong and tried to push it away but this man had been winning and you were stuck under his spell for the time being.  
“What is it then?” You boldly asked back.  
Jonathan placed his finger on his lips and winked.  
“Like that’s supposed to make it any better.” You rolled your eyes. The man had the nerve to keep even the simplest of things from you! That’s when you realised that on this trip, it was going to be your mission to get to know who you were now living with as much as you could. 

The suite was incredible, and to your relief it was a two bedroom luxury suite on the top floor. It had a perfect view of the city and the nature behind it. The lake from a distance and its mountainous regions, but it also contrasted with the urban life below. Yet again, this wasn’t what you had expected to come from Jonathan.  
“Don’t worry, I’ll take my bag.” You quickly stopped Jonathan and pulled your small suitcase from him.  
“There she is again, wanting to be all Miss Independent. Well, there are two rooms, you get to decide which one to have and I’ll take the other.”

“Pine?”  
“No.” He called through his room.  
“Jonathan Pine - it has a nice ring to it.” You said smirking.  
“I’m not named after a bloody tree.”  
“I bet it’s something embarrassing like cocks or Dickon.”  
“Jesus Christ, you must think my family really hate me. Of course it’s not!”  
His comment made you grin. “Is it even English?”  
“You’d be able to pronounce it just right. That’s all I’m going to say.”  
“I’m starting to think your surname is actually Harrington.” You suddenly started as you sipped on the glass of wine, provided by room service. Your legs were placed to once side as you made yourself comfortable on the couch, already dressed in your long t shirt and shorts for bed soon.  
Jonathan entered the living space and raised his head from his phone chuckling, “Believe what you want but I assure you it is not that.”  
“Are you sure it’s not an embarrassing one? I will not make fun of you that is the case.”  
“What is the deal with the surname talk? You plan on ratting me out to my boss or do you plan on marrying me? I wouldn’t mind being the first man to put a ring on your finger.” His laughter suddenly erupted and filled the room, caused you to nervously laugh with him. The latter at this stage was impossible for millions of reasons that you could not say aloud. You watched the man make his way to the glass coffee table and swipe his bottle of Guinness. You couldn’t let him have the upper hand, so you casually leaned back on the luxurious couch beside you, smirking as you took a sip from your wine.  
“Look as much as the latter appeals to me, I want to know at least something about you that is at least as basic as your surname. You are literally a closed book! It is completely unfair that you know so much about me yet I know so little about you!”  
Jonathan eventually turned to you and there was something about this man that also wound you up. It’s almost like he knew you inside and out, all the things you loved and hate about anything and everything but he still remained an enigma.  
“Who’s fault is that?” He asked, catching your attention.  
“Okay - it’s mine but still! Give me something!”  
“In due time, good things come to those who wait.”  
“Fuck this, I’m going to bed. Good riddance.” You let out a large huff and pulled yourself up. He quickly took your hand before you could leave, as you quickly spun round and almost tumbled into his lap, stopping yourself at an abrupt halt. Your hands were on his lap, intertwined with his. When your eyes moved up, you were caught in his orbs and time stopped for a moment. Your breath hitched and all thoughts in your mind left you blank.  
“Ah, I’m sorry, let me just.” You quickly pulled your hand out of his and stood back.  
“Oh no you have nothing to apologise for. I didn’t even realise I was doing that. I should be the one saying sorry.” He laughed nervously.  
“No - no. It’s fine.” You tried to recollect your thoughts and remembered why you were standing in the first place. “Christ, I need some sleep.” You face palmed, “Don’t look at me, I’m going to walk back and if you try to grab my hand, you will not be using those to touch anything else, mister.” You sassily managed to retort. Your attitude caused him to laugh hysterically on the couch.

Beams of light shone through the closed curtains of your room and forced you to awaken from your slumber. While you remained in a blanket cocoon, head against the large pillow, you realised that sleeping comfortable was something you had gotten used to thanks to Jonathan! Given the fact that you were apprehensive at first when it came to being around him in such a closed space, wondering if you were a burden to him, it was quite the opposite. He had proven to you that he valued your company greatly and this holiday he promised he would show it.

“Yes, I’m aware of that. I’ve been busy with a lot of work. It’s not my fault!” You hear Jonathan’s voice and can’t help but step forward to see him wondering around the living space in a casual white t shirt and jeans. He looks “Look, now is not the good time to talk. I’m out working, it’s unsafe for you to call me. No of course not!” He turned to your room door, where he found you quickly ducking aside. “Look, we’ll talk about this another time. I’m busy.”

A few seconds later you slowly stepped out heard him speak once more, “Ah! Good morning, Y/N! My terrible spy, you need to get dressed. We’re going out.”  
You rolled your eyes, how did he know you were spying on him when you were convinced your reflexes were fast?  
“I thought you were meant to be working.” You retorted.  
His face turned into a large grin. "You’re my guest, I can’t have you not having fun abroad! Come on, there’s something I must show you!” You watched him pick up an apple from the fruit basket provided and take a large bite. You looked from the movement of his muscles around the tightly fit shirt, to his tousled hair.  
“Y/N, you’re drooling.”  
Your eyes suddenly widen, “If I’m drooling for something it’s that apple. It looks bloody delicious.”  
“Sure you’re not talking about anything else?”  
“What could be more delicious than that apple you’re holding?” You asked with a blank expression.  
“I can name a few things.” He said proudly grinning. What was that supposed to mean?! “Stop getting me distracted!”  
“I wasn’t doing anything! You’re the one who’s actually drooling!”  
“Don’t try this reverse psychology. It doesn’t work on me. Now go on, get changed, we’re going out for breakfast. Aren’t you hungry?”  
“Oh god, yes.” You said as made your way back to your room. 

When you stepped out of the shower, your phone buzzed against the desk. It was your beloved husband, you managed to snag a picture of him while he was sipping his tea, you remembered how after that photo was taken he scolded you for doing so. Quickly you answered the phone.  
“Y/N! Thank goodness you’re there, I’ve been trying to reach you for ages!”  
“How long has ages been?” You asked calmly, even though you could sense a panic in his voice.  
“All yesterday! You wouldn’t pick up your phone! Are you alright? What’s been happening?”  
“I’m fine, nothing’s happened to me." You answered, confused.  
“I tried asking Bond where you were, says you haven’t spoken to him in a long while, so I tried the hotel you told me you were staying in and they said you checked out a couple of weeks ago. Is everything alright? Are you sure you’re not in any difficult situations because I’m home now, if you’d like to stay with me.”  
“No I’m fine, honestly. I’ve just been keeping myself busy and I’ve got somewhere else I’m staying for the time being.”  
“You know James is not as worried as I am. Forget him, but I feel obliged to watch and protect you.”  
“Listen, I'm perfectly fine, you don't need to watch over me. I’m kind of just taking a break out of London. This whole situation has taken its toll on me, I haven’t been feeling to great and-” Before you continued you stopped and turned around, “I swear to god if you’re lurking behind that door I will pick up my hair brush and throw it at you.” You heard Jonathan quickly shuffle away and mumble an apology, causing you to smile helplessly.  
“Who?” Q asked.  
“Not you. Someone else.”  
“You’re staying with someone else?”  
“Yeah, it’s just a friend who apparently likes to eavesdrop as much as I do in conversations. It’ll pass.”  
“By any chance is this who you’re living with?”  
“What’s with all the questions? You know - we’re not-” You stopped yourself quickly.  
“I know. I just - want to make sure you’re safe. That’s all. I still can care about you, you know.”  
You didn't know how to respond to that, considering you hadn't realised that Q still cared after all this time. The way you two had ended was more down to his part of not being able to contact you after being hired by the MI6. He distanced himself from you and with that, you grew accustomed to the situation.  
“That’s nice to know, Q. I just need time to get out and think that’s all. Look, I’ve got to go, I’m supposed to be heading out any time soon and my friend is waiting for me, I’d rather not keep them waiting.”  
“Oh - right that’s fine. Just make sure you drop me a message to let me know that you’re still there, alright? I do worry for you and I fear that we may not have been able to talk things through with the little time we’ve shared together. I’d like to know how you’re doing if James isn’t going to be the one to tell me himself.”  
“Alright.”  
“Have a good day, Y/N.”

You could tell the tone in his voice on the other end of the line showed great concern. He was truly worried and you could tell. However, this was Q. You knew him to be vulnerable when you first married him, although ever since you had reunited with him, he seemed more cold, sarcastic, immune to emotion, after all maybe that’s what his time in London could have done to him and somehow, that’s what caught you by surprise. But then there was another thing too, why had he been calling you the moment James was gone? What triggered this sudden feeling of needing to know how you were and where you were that only a significant other would feel. You managed to brush it from your mind and opt for a pair of dark blue jeans and a plain white shirt with trainers. Something casual, nothing that Jonathan hasn’t seen you in before.

As you stepped out, you found him opening the door for room service and smiling at you once the tea had arrived. God that smile. If only you could see him in only just an innocent light. Although you couldn’t. This man, there was something about him that kept your heart racing, sometimes left your mind blank and most of all intrigued, wanting more from him. Something that you admittedly once felt for James but that quickly vanished when you had second thoughts. But with Jonathan, there were no second thoughts. It was just him that constantly gave you that feeling, even from a simple smile. He looked at you as if you were the only woman in the world that mattered, which left you also feeling vulnerable, as though he was silently pulling down your guard.

The two of you headed to to a nearby café on foot and eventually Jonathan opened up about himself a little more. He spoke about his hobbies and interests. You learned about how he hadn’t always wanted to work in the murky world of espionage and actually aspired to work in a completely different career.  
“You surely have the talent with how dramatic you are. I’m sure I told you a couple of weeks ago that this was your destined career.”  
“I didn’t want to give you the satisfaction.” He laughed, “You get very smug when you’re right about something. It’s one of the little things about you that really sticks with me. You give a smirk like that! What you’re doing right now!”  
“I’m not doing anything!” Your gasp turned into a laugh.

The two of you spent the rest of the day sightseeing. Jonathan took you to the nearest bike rental store and the two of you spent time cycling and getting to know the city you were staying in, while Jonathan was courteous enough to explain everything as he had been here before, once. You rode past the Palais des Nations building in complete awe with what remained before you and Jonathan could see it when you had stopped, causing him to quickly break and move back to you.  
“Beautiful isn’t it?”  
“It’s amazing. Never thought I’d see it in person. The architecture is something that had always appealed to me with buildings like this.”  
“You like a little architecture? Then follow me my lady, I will show you the right place to go.” He said with a smirk, beckoning you to follow him.

It had been almost twenty minutes of cycling until Jonathan stopped in front of St. Pierre Cathedral and you had to say, you were gobsmacked. The architecture was a thing of beauty, again something you hadn’t expected to see in such a short space of time but Jonathan took pride in showing you around a place he knew. He stepped off his bicycle and helped you lock both of them as you made your way into the cathedral, theatrically leaving his arm out for you to hold onto. You took it with a smile as he spoke to you about the history of the building and how he learned from it on a drunken night out, stumbling on this place and meeting someone who was knowledgeable enough to speak about the place. Then before you knew it, you were exhausted, making your way back to the hotel by the time it reached 5.00 pm.

While inside the taxi, Jonathan spoke to you further about places you wanted to see, and if there was anything particularly you wanted to do, which you suggested skiing straight away. The quick suggestion made him laugh and he had promised you that it was going to happen.  
There was a look of sincerity in his eyes when he turned to you, which caught you off guard. “Look, I know it is late and you probably want to get some rest but I was wondering if you would like to accompany me to this restaurant I’ve been meaning to try out tonight.”  
You raised your eyebrow, “I imagine I have no choice because you already booked a reservation?”  
“Most definitely but again, I’m only trying to do the gentlemanly thing by asking you.”  
“If this is some fancy place, you know I don’t have anything to wear - right?”  
“It’s fine. We can sort something out.”  
“This is not a date.” You quickly stated, pointing your finger in the air quickly.  
“Well, what happens in Geneva stays in Geneva.” He stated, “But it’s two friends just having a drink, so be it.” He winked, causing your stomach to stir with butterflies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was not as exciting, I know! But I've got something in mind soon, I've just been trying to figure out how to get it done! I hope you did enjoy this!


	10. "Not friends."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your time with Jonathan is well spent in Geneva and he is proving to pull all the stops to help you relax this holiday. Just when you find that sense of comfort once again, you accidentally come across a familiar face when on an outing with Jonathan. However, that does not end well when you find yourself in an even worse predicament!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, Jonathan is the man of your choosing! He is out to impress the reader, hoping he is deemed worthy of their friendship...or is he looking out for more? Of course while all this is happening...where is James? I really hope you enjoy this chapter! This is taking me even longer to write because it requires more thinking - whoops. Don't forget to eave a kudos if you're enjoying the story!

Never had you expected to find yourself in something such as this. The navy dress hugged your figure perfectly and you hadn’t expected yourself to like it as much, even the make-up you had put to match the outfit. Your hair was left down and this time you wore shoes with a slight heel to them, which was a big change from the trainers you often wore. With that, you picked up your black leather jacket and stepped out, finding Jonathan stood in a black suit without a tie and open on the top two buttons of his shirt. You couldn’t help but admit that this man looked dashing, worthy of being swooned by him.

“You look - wow.” Jonathan’s mouth was left agape.  
“You might want to close it or the flies will get in.” You retorted, trying to make light of the moment.  
“I’m sorry love but this dress is beautiful. You look beautiful.”  
“Remember this is not a date.” You quickly reminded, warmth suddenly rising to your cheeks.  
“What I’m not allowed to compliment you?” He said, slightly frowning. “I’d very much rather have you knowing that you look absolutely ravishing than you not being aware of it at all.” There was a short silence between you two, one where Jonathan expressed his admiration for your choice in outfit. When suddenly his eyes lit up, “Oh I almost forgot! I’ve got you a gift.”  
“Jonathan I swear it’s like you’re asking to see me with a large receipt.”  
“No! It’s nothing ridiculously expensive. Close your eyes.”  
You did as you were told, and clenched your fists, something you naturally did when you were often nervous in anticipation. Jonathan pulled from his inner pocket a long, velvet box. Soon you felt something cold rest on your neck and Jonathan’s hands soon rest on your shoulders.  
“A beautiful gift, for a beautiful friend.” He said and slowly you opened your eyes. You looked down to notice it was a silver necklace with silver studs across the infinity charm. “I know you might have a solid plate of armour, but I thought what is armour without something to make it special. Everyone has a crest, you have a necklace.”  
“Jon you can’t give me this.” You quickly   
“Y/N. This is yours. I hope that you know that I intend on making this friendship last a lifetime and in the case I’m out on a mission and I may not return-” He stared, giving a long sigh.  
“Let’s not think like that.”  
A sad smile emerged on his face, “But we have to think that way, it’s the profession. I don’t mean to be dark but at least try not to forget that I existed. I want to be remembered, alright?” His tone turned from serious to humorous, causing you to laugh with him. “Now, are we going to get us something to drink or what? I intend on getting pissed on fancy drinks.”  
“That has never sounded better.”

The two of you made it to a small restaurant a couple of blocks away from where you were staying. It was one of those cosy restaurants that had mainly been upstairs on a long and wide terrace. Fairy lights surrounded the place, beaming brighter against the midnight blue sky. There were tables around with plain white umbrellas above them with small bulbs shining down on the wooden tables, alongside a small candle in the middle. Plants matched with the theme of the place and were dotted around the terrace. It was remarkable how Jonathan even discovered such a place. Both you and Jonathan were situated on a table near the edge of the terrace, so you could see the landscapes clearly. There were a few couples here dining together, except with the way you looked, some of the men had looked in awe at your presence.

“Looks like everyone only has eyes for you tonight.” Jonathan noted, with his chirpy grin as he opened the menu.  
“Please - let’s just get a drink and something to eat. I am so hungry, I could literally eat a huge main and think it’s only a starter.”   
“Good thing I brought you to the right place. Let’s say we drink as much our stomachs can give into tonight?”  
“Sounds like a plan!” You said determinedly as you looked down at the menu and both made your orders when the waiter stopped by. 

The waiter took your orders and you sought it as time to get to know Jonathan better. You had to interrogate him, otherwise you’d remain hostile for the rest of your time with him.  
“Where did you grow up?”  
“I grew up in a small area, no one would’ve ever heard of it.” He said casually.  
“Family?”   
“All over the country.”  
You huffed to his response. “Why Afghanistan?”  
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I tried many things, theatre being one of them but my parents sought it time I go out and do something now rather than wait for good fortune to find me so I went off to Afghanistan and spent eight years there.”  
“Relationships?”  
“As terrible as I am at them, only someone who is interested in me more than platonically would want to know the answer to that.” He chuckled and sipped on his alcoholic beverage before the waiter returned, interrupting the two with your food served. “What about you? Are you in a relationship of any kind?”  
“Are you interested in me more than platonically?”  
“You don’t know that.”  
“Then let’s not cross that bridge.” You said sassily and dived into your meal, letting out a small moan at the glorious taste that reached your taste buds. Jonathan turned to his drink with those eyes still on you as he took a sip, smiling to his satisfaction.

Hours later you were still not used to the fact that here you were, lying in your bed comfortably in Geneva. It wasn’t something you had expected and strangely you couldn’t sleep tonight. Maybe it was the fact that you and Jonathan shared a few drinks and meal together that the alcohol wouldn’t let you rest. Maybe it was that this man gave you more attention that you had ever been given that made your mind track to him, keeping you wide awake. You assumed Jonathan was asleep, seeing as he headed straight for his room and wished you goodnight. You could see that his eyelids were slightly heavy and some of his words were slurred.

Suddenly your phone buzzed. At 2am, who would call at this time of the night?  
Mindlessly you picked up the phone and tiredly mumbled, “Mhm? Who is it?”  
“So vulnerable - I’ll never get tired of hearing your voice like that.”   
You could hear the smirk behind the owner of the voice and your eyes immediately widened. You were more angered than excited to hear this man’s voice. How he remained arrogant, still after not having seen you for months.  
“Right that’s it.” Your voice was suddenly back to normal and you prepared to cut the phone when the voice on the other side was suddenly alert.  
“Wait! Y/N! Don’t hang up on me!”  
“What do you want?”  
“I just wanted to check up on you, see how things are going.”   
You chuckled, “James. We’re not friends. I don’t understand why you’d call me.”  
“But we are friends.”  
“No. We’re not. Now you want to refer to me as that but I’m sorry, I thought that I was too much of a pain in the arse to have friends. That I treat people like shit so no one can actually deal with being around me. We were two people who happened to live in the same flat for some time. ”  
“Well…” James sighed on the other end of the line, “That’s quite cold, even for you. I can’t believe you’d say that…” You could tell the man put on a performance of shock behind the phone. “Are you really willing to waste a year of friendship and over what? Come on Y/N. We both know everything that happened was in the heat of the moment. Can we discuss this like adults?” His tone was more harsh and patronising than he intended but you were already one step ahead with your anger towards this man and he had only made it worse.   
“Right. Adults. You see, you don’t have the right to tell me that. You don’t have the right to talk to me like that, because you betrayed our friendship, you betrayed my trust and most of all you betrayed me.”  
“Y/N-” He quickly interrupted.  
“No, you don’t get to talk to me about anything. You don’t have to explain yourself to me or tell me you’re sorry because you’ve only done what any guy would do for someone he loves and I don’t know what that is - trying to defend them? I’m going to be honest, your girlfriend is toxic. She is awful and one day she may be the one thing that ruins you.”  
“Y/N that’s enough.” He snapped.  
“No. No it’s not until I’ve said my piece. I don’t like her and that makes you two perfect for each other, you both like to get on my fucking nerves. But I’ve learned something while I’ve been away trying to make sense of what the hell has been happening these past two months quite frankly James, I should’ve be blaming myself. That’s right for the first time ever, I’m blaming myself for ever allowing you to know anything about me. Or ever starting to believe that we were going to be friends.”  
“You know none of this was your fault.”  
“But that’s where you’re wrong. It was because you taught me the reason why I don’t like getting close to anyone. This whole mess made me realise that I shouldn't care anymore and I don’t. I’m at a point in my life where I don’t need to deal with all this shit that keeps getting worse. I hate it. I’m tired. So I’m moving on and I think it’s time you do too. Have a good life.”  
“No wait Y/N I think we should really-”  
“Goodbye James.” You quickly cut the phone and let out a long sigh. You had reached the point now where you were no longer angry at him, you were angry at yourself for letting him getting close to you. He didn’t deserve it and now that he did he finally got to you.

Quickly, you switched off the phone as it buzzed again and let out a long sigh. A pang of hurt couldn’t help but crawl its way into you. This called for a lonesome drinking session.   
Inside the front room, you leaned back against the couch, admiring the skyline outside. You don’t know whether it was the Jameson you had giving you a slight buzz or the fact you were extremely tired but it had you in complete awe. 

“Penny for your thoughts?” The baritone voice behind you asked, causing you to quickly snap your head to the side. Jonathan had quickly discarded of his suit and donned a plain white shirt with stripy pyjama bottoms. You could tell he just had a shower with the way his hair had a failed attempt in trying to be tamed but instead ended up being tousled.  
“You see that’s why I have the drink. To down thoughts away. Thanks anyway.”  
“Well, would you mind sharing some of that? I don’t want to die dehydrated.” Jonathan asked, yet before you could answer he sat next to you. A part of you realised what he was doing by keeping his distance, to make sure you were comfortable around him. However, the other part thought he wasn’t close enough. You wanted to be close enough to take in everything about him, as you had done earlier that night. His scent had sent you into a peaceful state, knowing that at least you were comfortable and that’s all the person beside you wanted.

Slowly, he pulled the Jameson from your hand with both your fingertips brushing then poured himself some in a glass. You tried to look away from him as he took a sip from his drink and sat back comfortably.  
“You seriously don’t want to talk about what’s going on in that head of yours?”  
“You’d be scared to know what’s going on up here.” You laughed but soon noticed that he soon came to a stop, looking at you with a sad smile.

But then it hit you what he had asked. Oh no. You could not open yourself up to him. Not after the vow you took and especially with the phone discussion you had with James, it was clear that you were not going to talk.  
“Look I’m fine.” You said, trying to reassure him. “I’m just thinking about how much I owe you once this trip is done, plus rent.”  
Jonathan’s face lit up with laughter and you could see he was back to being at ease with your humour. “Hey, you don’t owe me anything. I want to do this...Wait...Are you adding up a bill inside your head?”  
“What else am I supposed to do? This is all too expensive!”  
“How about you enjoy yourself!" He placed his hand on your arm, "This is meant to be a break, not a chance to completely dredge your life savings and live in debt. Listen, I remember you telling me how much you’d love to go skiing, so why don’t we do that tomorrow?” Soon he let go, realising he had been absentmindedly rubbing circles with his thumb along your bare skin.  
“So that adds let’s say another - fifty pounds to the bill?” You added jokingly.  
“Y/N...I swear to god I’m going to have to silence you if you mention anything about a bill.” He chuckled.  
“And how do you intend to do that?” You said smirking proudly.  
“Well that’s for me to know and you to find out.” He winked.

From there, you two talked for hours about places around Switzerland and not once did you manage to find out any more than you did about him at dinner, which was sad because you knew there was a lot more to him. He seemed passionate yet troubled sometimes and you could see it with every sip he took.

By the time you had pulled yourself up, you found yourself in bed. You didn’t remember walking back there. You barely remember what happened beyond sitting on the couch, talking to Jonathan. Suddenly, a painful twinge attacked your head and caused you to fall back onto the pillow. Then you turned to your side, where you found a glass of cold water and some tablets. "What a lifesaver" You thought.

You found him on the phone once again, this time he seemed calm. He sat on the couch with his laptop in front of him, “Well if you’ve got a visual on the rogue agent, I can try to put him to a stop as soon as we can. He was last sighted in Casino Geneva at 0200 hours but that's all I can give you at the moment. Yes Mam, I’ll try to do my best. Thank you Mam.”   
Jonathan looked up with a smile, noticing you leaning against the door frame. “Good morning, love." That was never going to get old hearing. "You uh - you passed out on the couch, I thought I’d carry you back to your bed.”  
“I’m not complaining, I imagine dealing with me being drunk was a complete breeze.”  
“You are very entertaining I’ll give you that but don’t worry. Nothing incriminating was said or done.”  
“Thank goodness for that. I’d rather keep the incriminating things to myself.” You retorted, picking up a croissant from the tray and took a bite.  
Jonathan rose to his feet and you hadn’t expected him to stand so close to you, “Look we might have to cut the skiing trip short today. Work needs me and I’ve just had a phone call from my boss telling me I need to act now as things are getting out of hand and we may lose who I'm after.”  
“It’s fine, we can go some other time.” You shrugged, slowly taking a step back before you were going to do something you knew wouldn’t make anything better.  
There was something about the way his eyes widened in concern that struck you with fascination. This man was very emotive and he made sure it was known he was. “Oh I didn’t say we’re not going today. I still intend on giving you a taste of what may be the next time we go together.” He chuckled, “Why don’t you get something warm on and we’ll head off.”

The two of you made it to a skiing resort, which more than fascinated you. A large, glass modern building had been situated on the top as you jumped off the cable car and you were sure glad that Jonathan advised warm clothing. As you made your way inside you both geared up and as Jonathan promised, he’d devote a few hours to skiing with you before he had to head off to work. 

At first, you were terrified, the idea of sliding miles down to reach the bottom was a daunting thought. Although Jonathan remained behind you and placed a hand on your shoulder, his baritone voice placing you at ease. “Remember everything I told you, now’s not the time to be afraid. Just breathe, love. I’ll be right behind you as you go. Alright?”

With that, you pushed forward. You hadn’t expected to be such a natural but Jonathan’s words placed you at ease and off you went. Just as he promised, he remained behind you, making sure that you remained safe under his watch at all costs. It did have you at ease and the more you noted that he was staying close to you, the more you trusted him. After reaching your third lap of going down, you stopped at the top of the slope to take a break, admiring Jonathan and the way he moved even better than you did. It was as if he was a professional skier and had done this for years, which you wouldn’t have minded as he was a proclaimed man of action. 

As you took a sip of your drink, your head a voice, “Y/N? What are the chances?”  
Suddenly, your head snapped to the side and you found James stood there with a look of amazement.  
“No. I - no. We spoke about this. I don’t want to talk to you anymore, Bond."  
"Can't we just have a moment, please? I think you've avoided me long enough."  
"No, If you'll excuse me.”

The man wore sunglasses and a black skiing outfit. Some things just never change, as you noted. He reached his hand out to try and stop you when you quickly pushed yourself back and turned around to quickly join Jonathan. You had to get away from him, all that negativity had to be pushed aside. As you rode faster and faster, all you could think was to move away from him. How dare he? How dare he appear out of nowhere and ruin things for you again. 

Just as you tried to clear your mind, everything turned black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reader has confirmed she is no longer friends with James...ahhhh! I have no idea where I went with that or if I'm happy with it. Hopefully the next chapter will be a lot more interesting now that we're getting an insight into Jonathan's work and his goal in Geneva! Will I post another chapter this week? If its any good - I hope so. Don't forget to leave a kudos again, if you're enjoying the Bond's new flatmate series!


	11. "Don't move..."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After recently coming face to face with James and facing the ultimate backlash, you now find yourself in a position of discomfort, anger and a good old broken leg at the hands of the skiing accident. Jonathan tries to comfort you - is this finally the type of comfort you’ve been looking for?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, Jonathan is the man of your choosing! We’re starting to hear more of James and the dear husband, Q! This story does get better, I promise it will! Well I don't know! But I really hope you enjoy this chapter! Drop some kudos if you're enjoying this! I know I have in mind who I vision as Jonathan and hopefully you do to because this story has become a lot of fun to write!

You woke up hearing muffled voices around you and woke up to seeing a blurry figure beside you. A quick and sharp pain jolted within your leg, which you felt had been hoisted above where it needed to be. Then you turned to your left arm and found it trapped in a cast. ”Ah!” You groaned, catching the two figures by surprise. Soon you could see that one of them was Jonathan.  
“Oh my god! Y/N, are you alright?” He was mortified by the sight of the bruises that stained your face and how pale your lips are from how long you must’ve been in the frost. He quickly moved to your side and brought your hand to his lips. Something you didn’t bother to acknowledge as all you could feel had been numbness seeping through you.  
“Why the fuck is it so bright? God, can you turn that off?” Your voice was croaky and you were rendered weak, although your words still somehow managed to show that you were tough as nails. Jonathan couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.  
“You took quite a hard fall out there, love. I didn’t think you were going to wake up so soon.” Jonathan said with a small sigh as he turned to the doctor, who spent time checking you.  
“Hello Miss, Y/L/N, I’m Dr Hans Bjornsson. Your partner brought you here after a skiing accident. Do you remember anything about it?”  
Partner. You hadn’t paid attention to the term but gave a small nod. “I remember being damn good at skiing until that point.” You said with a smirk, causing your friend to helplessly chortle.  
“And how do you feel?” The doctor asked.  
“I wish I could answer that question, doc but I’m going to be honest with you, I can’t feel a thing in my body. Except as though someone is crushing my head with a rock.”  
“We’ll get some anaesthetics for that headache. Also I wanted to let you know that you tore you’ve have fractured your ankle after taking the hard fall and from the temperatures you were in outside, it increased the swelling and has been difficult to get down. Also a couple of your ligaments from your calf have also been fractured on your right leg, hence why it is hanging up. Your arm took some severe damage too as you fractured your wrist but other than that, you’re lucky you didn’t take any worse injuries. It’s not usual that people would wake up so soon from a fall taken such as you’ve taken. I’ll leave you two for a moment and make sure a nurse comes back with the anaesthetics.” 

He left you and Jonathan alone in the room together. There was a silence lingering and you could tell that even though Jonathan wanted to make sure you had the rest you needed, he still had questions he needed to ask. He held your hand tighter and interlocked his fingers with yours eventually. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t woken up.”  
“How long have I been out for?”  
“A little over a day. Again, your fall could’ve put you in a coma. The doctor was right, you were lucky. Really lucky.” He sighed.  
“Well I’m sorry I put a whole damper on the holiday for getting too cocky.” You laughed weakly.  
“Oh no, this is entirely my fault. I should’ve been watching you from the beginning. This was on me, I promised I’d be there and I wasn’t. That was a really shit thing for me to do.” He frowned, scratching his head. “I can’t believe I made false promises.”  
“Jon, I’m going to be fine. It was one little accident. You’re not to blame for any of this. ” You said and before you could continue, you entered a raging coughing fit. Jonathan quickly leaped up to your bedside and stroked your back as you coughed. He then turned around and before you knew it, he had a cup of water in his hand and was helping you drink from it. Simple acts like these, you hadn’t expected him to take on but the more he did, the more you warmed up to him. It was difficult for you to do so, but somehow this man made it easy for you to do so.  
“It’s alright. I’m here.” He said with a sigh as he rubbed circles on your arm. Eventually, you gave in and leaned against his shoulder, taking in his scent as you did so. Besides being next to each other on the plane, and the incident at his home where he proposed the idea of going to Geneva, you hadn’t been within such close proximity of him. This was completely different, you weren’t nervous. Just at ease. Soon enough, your eyes started to drift off to the sound of his voice.

“And remember, you cannot take part in any physical activity that could potentially stop the healing process. Your injuries may be severely damaged afterwards if you do so.” The doctor said as he signed the rest of the papers.  
“I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen, doc.” Jonathan stated, which earned him a glare from you. “I’ll be watching her like a hawk this time.”  
You rolled your eyes, “Yeah, yeah. Got it. Don’t move around too much. Jesus, I’m literally going to be trapped inside that room with nothing to do!”  
“It’s what’s best for you, Y/N.”  
“Mhm. Yep.” You snapped quickly as you picked up your crutches, while Jonathan remained a close distance behind you.

“Jesus christ! Why does it hurt so much?” You groaned as you leaned back into the soft couch. The pain hadn’t subdued at all since you last took painkillers but in fact had gotten progressively worse. You tried to reach for the remote on the coffee table, but even that was a sport.   
“Y/N! You’re not supposed to be moving that’s why it hurts. Let me help you.” He quickly said, moving your shoulders back so he could pick up the remote for you.   
“You do realise I still have a right hand. Right?”  
“Which is useless when you also have a broken leg.” He noted and stepped forward. You saw him drop beside you in a pair of shorts and a t shirt. God - your not so innocent thoughts came creeping in.  
“What are you doing? Aren’t you supposed to be working?  
“Your wellbeing matters more to me, Y/N. I don’t want to be a complete twat and leave you here on your own. You deserve to be looked after.” He said with a genuinely serious tone.  
“Look I really think you should go out there. I heard you on the phone in the taxi and I can tell you want to get this mission done. I don’t want to stop you.”  
“But Y/N, I’d very much rather be here with you, watching crappy television and drinking beer. I’ll even order us a pizza.” He groaned, scratching his head.  
“Jon! Go out and do your job otherwise I’ll be the reason you’re sacked!” You reprimanded him, earning a playful whine from his lips. This was your chance to have fun while you were in a miserable position, so you playfully tapped near his ass, urging him to move. “Off you go. Do your job!”  
“Alright, alright! But you know we’re not finished here.” He said, pulling you gently to him with a devious smirk. “You’re definitely going to regret sending me away.”  
“Good thing I’m literally stuck here while you go out so you don’t have to anticipate me disappearing by the time you get back.” You retorted and leaned away from him. “Now Jon, get up, it’s time for you to go.”

Jonathan returned ten minutes later in black dress trousers, a navy blue sweatshirt and a black leather jacket. His usually untamed hair was styled so it was kept maintained and again, the not so innocent thoughts came creeping in. “I won’t be long.” He said and approached you slowly, then planted a kiss on your head. Something again, you hadn’t expected from him.  
“Give me a ring if there’s anything you need and I’ll be here as soon as I can.”  
“I won’t need anything because I can do things myself, you know.”  
“Don’t you fucking dare move from that couch unless you need the toilet or room service.” His voice had a hint of dominance to it, which made you blush slightly. You hadn’t been used to this side of him, but it was surely something you were going to enjoy testing.

With that, Jonathan was gone and you were left watching a television show in front of you.  
Your phone buzzed beside you, causing you to huff deeply at the caller. “Y/N! Thank goodness you’re alive!” The concern from your husband’s voice was clear. “I heard you were involved in an accident.”  
“The dead isn’t coming for me yet, I’m fine.” You chuckled.  
“No, I know you’re not alright. What are the injuries? Are you alright?”  
“Broken right leg, and I’ve fractured my left wrist so it’s in this stupid cast, in this stupid sling.” You groaned.   
“Do you want me to come there?”  
“Oh no! Don’t - no. I’m fine, everything is completely under control. Please don’t come here.”  
Q gave a long sigh, “I wish I could’ve been there to make things less painful for you. I just wish you weren’t so stubborn. When I heard James telling me this-“  
“Right.” You chuckled sarcastically.  
“What?”  
“Nothing. Carry on.” You shrugged, gritting your teeth to the sound of his name.  
“Y/N, did he gave anything to do with the accident? I know James and when he wants something, he goes in full force for it without considering the consequences.”  
“Nah, I didn’t even know he was there and to be honest, I don’t really care.”  
There was a pause and you can tell Q was contemplating something. “Y/N, I feel badly about how I left you in a time of need.”  
“It’s not your fault. Alright? At least I had money to fall back on.”  
“I know but now all this has happened. You’re injured and - Bond’s gone rogue. He’s not answering his calls and pulled off his tracker, he was supposed to attend a meeting between Nikolaj Altherr and get a feel of potential terror threats around the room but when he told me he saw you cycling with a friend - he simply cut off all ties with us.”  
“Huh. That’s funny. Again, I don’t really care about him.”  
“Are you and this friend - are you two-?”  
“Going out? No.” You could almost hear the worry in his voice on the other end of the line. “Unlike James, I actually know how to keep friends of the opposite gender without any sexual experiences with them. I’m not even thinking about jumping into anything right now.” Although you felt slightly bad for saying such as Jonathan made you feel differently.  
“Right.” You could’ve sworn you heard a sigh of relief. “When this holiday of yours is over, I was thinking- maybe we can go for a drink. Catch up properly, somewhere nice and no James Bond to ruin it.”  
It was a friendly offer and after all Q had been there to check up on you when Jonathan hadn’t been. “Alright. Although it’ll have to be a little while after I return. I plan on working relentlessly to get something in my bank account that isn’t just a drain sucking all the money out.”  
Q chuckled and with that you had a small smile on your face. “Please, take care of yourself Y/N. I only want what’s best so lay off the heavy work. Take care of yourself. Alright? Are you at home?”  
“No, I’m still in Geneva but I’m stuck inside the hotel.”  
“Good. I want you to make sure you take care of yourself.” He said, seriously.  
“I’ll try to.” You laughed nervously and ended the call.

You spent a few minutes trying to put two and two together with your conversation. Q had never asked you out in an intimate setting since you last saw each other in Oxford...you silently prayed he didn’t have those feelings return once again. And James going rogue over you? What the hell was that about? But he was in Geneva...and Jonathan mentioned needing to detain a rogue agent in Geneva. Uh oh.

Hours past by and as much as you were enjoying the cosy room, with a fireplace before you and beautiful view of the city and mountains behind, you were getting bored. Your room was large enough to have a kitchen on the other end, and you were sure there was nothing in it. So you pulled yourself up after five minutes and dragged yourself to the door. Gosh it was a challenge, even trying to open the door with one hand.

Just as you did, you grinned to your satisfaction when you bumped into something hard. Then the smell of pizza drifted towards you along with Jonathan’s scent.  
“Fucking kidding me?” You whispered.  
“Kidding? I don’t think so. Where do you think you’re going Miss Y/L/N?” Jonathan’s accent got to you quickly and guilt seeped it’s way into you. You could even hear him smirking as he said so.  
“There’s a bar downstairs right?” You said, squeezing your eyes shut.  
“Yes but you’re not going there.”  
“But I’m bored! I’ve been stuck in there and if I watch another episode of countdown I am going to lose my shit! Can’t I just see something?”  
“Not now. You only just got discharged today!” He said with a frown and moved to your ear, “Now what did I tell you about moving from that couch? You’re going to go back inside or else this pizza is not going anywhere near you.”  
Even when he spoke about food, butterflies swarmed your stomach. His voice was incredibly low and it was incredibly hot. But he also knew that you would have been super hungry by now, which you admired him for being able to detect.

Soon, you gave up and hobbled back inside, while Jonathan places his arm on the small of your back, directing you inside. “I hate you...” you mumbled.  
“Darling, you like the idea of hating me.” He smirked and dropped the boxes of pizza on the counter. “I’m going to change and I mean it this time, don’t move or I’ll handcuff you to the chair myself.”  
Your eyes quickly widened to the sound of that, “Wait a minute - you carry handcuffs with you?”   
“I’m practically a police officer for agents, of course I carry handcuffs with me.”  
“I’m not too sure that’s the only reason you carry them with you…” It was bold enough for you to say, but you only managed to get a chuckle from him and no other answer. For a moment you smirked to the sound of that but then blushed when you realised...he hadn’t given you a definitive answer.

Jonathan returned in his shorts and white t shirt, which you could die for, “How do you feel now?” He asked as he entered the front room. He saw you sat back on the couch with your leg up and you appeared miserable. He poured you both a glass of Ben Nevis and handed you your pizza as it was going to be a struggle to reach.  
“Shit is an understatement.” You groaned as you started eating your pizza.  
“I’m really sorry.” He said frowning. “I should’ve been there and I promised you I would be.”  
“Nah. It’s not your fault, again I was reckless...I got carried away.”  
“Do you want anything else?” He said, casually rubbing your uninjured knee from time to time.  
“Can you fix my leg?”  
“That I cannot do, if I had the power to I’d have done that the moment I found you. I don’t think this was all down to recklessness. You’re a lot smarter than that.” He stated, “Do you remember what happened?”  
“I don’t know. I finished my break, then...” Your breath hitched. Jonathan snapped his head to you, noticing you stop.  
“What else happened?”  
“I got really into it and just happened to go too fast. That’s all. Then everything went black only when I realised I was going too fast.”  
“Mhm.” He places his fingers beneath your chin and turned you to him. His eyes bore into yours and you felt as though you couldn’t move under his gaze. “You know when I was out I thought you were going to do something like this. Leave the suite to go to the bar.”  
“You know me too well.” You smirked. Soon he moved his hand back onto the pizza. “So uh, did you manage to catch him?”  
“No. Unfortunately not. Weirdly, his last sighting was at the same ski resort as us on the day of your accident. Y/N...” he knew already the sigh of defeat. “The rogue agent I need to detain is one Agent 007. And I’m only telling you this because. I recently found out his name is...”  
“James Bond. He was my flatmate. I know. I put two and two together this afternoon.”

You placed your pizza on the table and leant back letting out another long sigh. Jonathan instinctively placed his arm around yours and pulled you to his chest, where he kissed the top of your head. “You don’t have to tell me what happened now, I can wait but in due time I hope we can trust each other enough to tell each other things.”  
“Mhm.” You absentmindedly said. After a few minutes of silence, Jonathan was the first to speak. “Two brothers.”  
“Hm?”  
“I’ve got two brothers and I’m the middle child. Apparently I was the most dramatic of us three but I’d say my youngest brother was the biggest drama queen.”  
You smiled slightly, finally there were things he wanted to say. “I can’t imagine anyone else being more dramatic than you.”  
“Well, my family is like walking into a full on pantomime sometimes.” He laughed, “I haven’t seen much of them since I returned from Afghanistan as that was when I was recruited by a branch of the MI6 to help control field operatives that potentially may harm the preservation of life or the mission itself.”   
You snuggled closer to him as he spoke. “Well I went to Oxford, studied medical forensics and did my PhD there so there’s nothing as fascinating as yours.”  
“Wait so you’re a doctor?”  
“Yeah I don’t know how I managed to get there. To be fair, I went to awful schools all my life until Oxford. Lived on a council estate with my family it wasn’t fun but there was always something to hold onto for the future. You know?”  
“I understand. You know, I had an inkling that you would be a remarkable woman. That there’s so much more to you than what meets the eye.”  
“I know how to make some quality homemade dishes and a mean homemade burger if you’re looking to wife me as well. Over six years in university does wonders.” You winked, looking up at the stubble that started to grow into something more, which tickled.  
“What? Can I wife you now? I’ve been meaning to have someone to share a cookbook with for ages!” The two of you laughed for a while when suddenly Jonathan’s phone rang.

Jonathan picked up his phone, “Hello?” A young woman’s voice was on the other and he quickly moved forward. He turned to you, “Excuse me for one second.”

He rose from his seat and made his way to his room to continue the call. Though you were knackered, you really saw it as time to go to bed, so you hoisted yourself up and hobbled into your room. That bold character seeping in once again. Jonathan returned to find you gone.  
“Y/N?” He quickly dashed around the place when he found you in your room, sat on the edge, letting out a long sigh. “Y/N if you need help, that’s what I’m here for! You need to stop moving around like that.”  
“I’m fine though. I don’t need help.” You tried to pull off your shirt but struggled in doing so, causing Jonathan to laugh. “Do you need help?”  
“Fuck sake.” You huffed, “Fine, help me out then.” You groaned as he grinned making his way towards you. “Don’t worry I won’t look afterwards. If you don’t mind.” He said, pointing to your shirt and at this point you weren’t bothered. Jonathan raised your shirt over, carefully and turned around as you managed to undo your bra. “Can you hand me my night shirt, in the drawer.” He looked into the drawer and pulled out a blue striped night tee, then handed it to you. For a moment you struggled to get your arm through but Jonathan was more than happy to help and even with your jeans, which he managed to undo. He buttoned the shirt, keeping his eyes on yours as he did so, then when he reached the final buttons, he looked down and left two open so your arm had space to move. Simple things like this got to you especially. He helped you turn around and kissed your head before making his way to the door.

“Goodnight.” He said with a small smile. “If you need anything, just call me.”  
“Wait. Could you - I figured it would be hard to get you if you’re so far when I need you for something. Uh - would you mind staying here? Or you could go back to your room. It’s cool.” You hid under the covers not bothering to wait for his answer as you knew he was going to say no. The man had to be in a relationship which made this uncomfortable. Suddenly you feel the bed dip and covers raise. “I could never say no to you, Y/N.” You Quickly clenched your fist in the sheet at a sudden pain in your body. Then an arm snaked around your waist reluctantly, “Do you mind?”  
“Not at all.”  
“Thank you - by the way. For the pizza - and telling me about some of your family. I probably didn’t tell you as much as you probably would’ve hoped.”  
“It’s alright. You don’t have to. I’ll give you the time and space you need.” He said as he pulled you closer to him. “When you’re ready, you know I’m here.”  
You felt a kiss being planted on your cheek and soon your eyes were heavy and you dozed off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well - well- well, Jonathan is after James and this just makes things awkward! So many questions, who is this woman that keeps calling Jonathan? Is he single? Why is Q calling the reader often? Where on earth is James in all of this? As usual, leave a kudos if you're enjoying this! A double whammy this week is rare so I hope you're embracing this!


	12. "This isn't over..."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The teasing between you and Jonathan quickly escalates over the next few days and after having him care for you, the man is seen in a new light. However, Jonathan’s mission to detain James becomes problematic when an unlikely face stops by at the hotel to see you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Finally, I'm back with another chapter after months of constant procrastinating! Again, Jonathan is the man of your choosing! So now I don’t know what the hell happened to the plot...it’s gone all over the place. I’m really sorry! I hope you enjoy this!

Jonathan turned to his side and absentmindedly moved his arm to where you were supposed to be. It became quite natural for him to wrap his arms around you whenever you were in close proximity. But this alarmed him. He woke up to hearing a smash. He turned to his side, not seeing you beside him. His eyes widened as he leapt out of bed and rushed to the kitchen, where he found you reaching for a glass up in the cabinet from the kitchen of your hotel suite.  
“Y/N? What on earth?” He snapped, more annoyed than entertained by the sight.  
You rolled your eyes and tried to rest your injured arm against the counter so you could heave yourself up. “What? I needed a drink!”  
“That’s why you get me. You could’ve woken me up!” He huffed, scratching his head and made his way towards you. “You know we shared a bed for a reason. Right?”  
“Yeah but I wanted to this on my own.” You shrugged.  
“For Christ's sake! You are impossible! You know there’s a fine line between admirable independence and being just plain -” Suddenly his phone rang and you managed to get a glimpse of the screen, the woman’s face looked similar to that of the blonde you saw from the framed photograph in his front room. “This isn’t over.” Jonathan warned, making his way to his room. “I think it is.” You retorted with a smirk proudly and managed to pull off another glass.

 “Hello? No I don’t want to talk. There’s nothing to talk about. No I can’t talk to you here!...I’m busy - with work!” You could tell the man was angered but instead you decided to do your own thing and keep looking reaching for glasses. Eventually, you managed to grasp one one and let out a long sigh of relief. Then you looked up and realise you had to get the bottle too. Just as your hand reached up, struggling this time another hand up and pulled the bottle down for you. Slowly you turn around and see Jonathan with a sad smile. “I’m here to help. Remember?” Then you realised his hands were on each side of you on the counter. You directed your eyes to both hands and he knew what you meant, but you two kept still. You placed your hand on the back of his neck and planted a soft kiss on his lips.

It wasn’t expected, especially from you. You looked up at him slightly dazed, this wasn’t horrific. It was comfortable, tender and warming. A kiss you wish had the feelings stuck with you for a lifetime. Jonathan slowly moved his hands onto your waist and smiled, it wasn’t a ‘shit eating’ grin, it was genuine. 

Your eyes then widened and you realised what you had done. Quickly, you stepped back and took a leap of faith in becoming the first one to speak.“This was - probably a bad idea.”   
Jonathan frowned slightly and pulled himself back, “Shit. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-”  
“Don’t apologise.” You quickly stopped him. What on earth were you doing? You had no idea! “It was my bad - well my bad idea anyway.”

The two of you were silent briefly before you erupted into laughter. The tension in the room still lingering in the air.  
“Would you like me to mix your drink while you go and sit down?” Jonathan volunteered. “It is dangerous to have strong alcohol with the medication you’re on, after all.”  
“Hell no. I can’t trust you mixing drinks.” You argued quickly.  
Jonathan couldn’t suppress his laughter, looking like the cheeky chap you knew him to be. “There’s only a coke in the fridge and that’s the only thing actually allowed to be mixed with rum. What else do you think I would use?”  
“After the promise drink, I realised you could literally use anything.”  
“Alright - I concur.” 

You hadn’t realised how adorable and hearty his laugh was. It was something you didn’t realise meant much to you until you were so close to him. You could see he was reluctant in making any move, but you moved your hand to his arm, assuring him. Just as he leaned in for another kiss, your phone rang in your pocket.  
“Oh god. I’ve got to take this.”  
“No, no. It’s fine.” He stepped back scratching his head, “I’ll get that drink sorted. How does a glass of water sound?”  
“Fuck no, I’m not pregnant. I want some alcohol in my system.” You called out, causing him to laugh.

Just as you looked down at the phone, you found Q’s number calling and rolled your eyes. How convenient. The moment you found yourself starting to lean towards someone, your husband managed to make his presence known.  
“Good morning, Y/N. How are you feeling?”  
“Uh yeah, I’m fine. Doing great. Isn’t it a bit early where you are to call?”  
“The neighbour’s dogs are frightening the cats and making a lot of noise. I can’t sleep through it. Thought I’d check up on you while I write an email to the landlord."  
"Ha. A strongly worded email, that definitely is you." Your eyebrows raised, “I guess I can spare five minutes. What else is going on?”

You knew him too well and for that Q let out a long sigh. “I did some CCTV research to figure out why Bond’s still gone rogue and-“  
“I told you I don’t care. Anything concerning Bond? I really don’t want to know about.”  
“Just listen, he’s still in Geneva and the reason he’s still rogue is because the ARPC are trying to track him down and detain him. They have a field officer out after him.”  
“So I’ve heard.” You answered with a small smirk.  
“Y/N, as much as I’d like to find this humorous, it’s quite serious. We are talking about this being under the orders of M and Dame Elanor Woods, under section three of threatening the preservation of life act. Bond could be stripped to a desk job for over 12 months, maybe even indefinitely. You have to talk to James, get him to give himself up. I know he probably might’ve had a hand in your accident but he’s even more regretful about it. Only just he’s been unable to see you because-”  
“He’s not bothered anymore.”  
“Y/N.” He sighed eventually. “Look I was in a meeting with the Head of the ARPC and they have already sent someone after him. One Agent Hastings.”  
“What? You mean like the battle? Who's named after a fucking battle? Oh...wait." And then everything connected at that moment. "Here’s me thinking he had an embarrassing surname all along…”  
“What? You know him?"  
"Well...I've seen of him. No idea who he is though."  
"Y/N this is dangerous, you don't want to get caught up in what's about to entail. Your injuries are only an ounce of what you’re getting yourself into.”  
“Yeah I know but-”  
“No buts.” He quickly interrupted, causing you to freeze. What was that about? “I just worry greatly for you.” He sighed, “You’re one of the only people I show a great deal of concern for. You know - platonically.” He quickly added.  
“Oh. Right.” You quickly had to dismiss the awkward silence. Just the thought of Jonathan making you a glass of water instead of giving you the delicious whiskey you so desperately wanted had you on edge. “By the way I’ve been doing a lot of thinking while I’ve been away...I think I’m going to start gathering the money to start the whole divorce process.. I understand you’d probably want to break free from this damning clause. Right?”  
“Oh right, of course. Yeah - it’s definitely in the way of me - you know me getting into relationships and things like that.” The man retorted.  
“When I see you we’ll talk about it more, okay?”  
   
As you sat on the couch, Jonathan returned from the shower fully dressed.  
“I’ve got to head out today, duty calls.” He stated, shoving his hands into his pockets.  
You held your breath for a moment and sighed, knowing that talking to Jonathan about the situation would probably be the best thing to do. Before you could let a word out he said, “Now remember what I said about not moving.”  
   
You hadn’t realised hours passed and felt a weight moving beside you. You were on the laptop earlier, searching for things to do and places to see while Jonathan would be working. Then took a nap. Something triggered you, causing you to slam the laptop shut before he could notice. Then you felt a light kiss against your forehead.  
“Hey, you.” You mumbled sleepily, too tired to take notice of his affection.  
“You didn’t move this time.” His much softer, baritone voice answered.  
“Mhm. There’s no way I’m letting you handcuff me to the couch.” You huffed, trying to sit yourself up straight when Jonathan stepped in instantly. “Look, we’ve got to talk.” You finally said.  
“Oh? Is it something I’ve done?” His eyebrows raised with concern.  
“More like something you’re doing. Um - how do I put this, your job.”   
“What about my job? Oh wait is this about - James?” You could see the sudden concern spring upon his eyes.  
You nodded, “We have to talk about you detaining him.”  
“Because he’s a rogue agent placing many lives at risk. I’m merely preserving them, darling. If you think I have anything against him, I don’t.” He said earnestly, holding onto your hand. “That is unless he had a hand in your accident, then that’s different.” You could feel his glare piercing through you as he said so.  
“Oh um, no.” You quickly intervened, “Just - uh, forget about the accident.” What was wrong with you? Faltering on your words? “Look I don’t want to get caught up in this but knowing he’ll be detained - it’s not right for me to be here with you while that happens. At one point he was my friend.”  
“So what are you - what are you implying?”  
“I think maybe I should go back to London and kind of just keep away from all of this-”  
It was as if you spoke of an abominable crime because Jonathan quickly sat up and gasped. “Oh no! No love, I don’t think that’s what you need. You need a holiday.”  
“Hello? Jon? You there? You seen my leg and my arm? This shitstorm is not a holiday for me.” You retorted. “Plus this is your work, I’m only intervening.”  
“Listen, you have to understand we all have jobs to do and this is my job. Keep in mind his own chief wants me to detain him in the first place. I can’t risk you going back.”  
“I just don’t think this is all for me. I wanted to stay away from trouble but it looks like trouble found me.”  
“The accident was not your fault, alright? I don’t want you to go back because of all of this. I - I do like having you here.” He said with a small smile.  
“What will happen to him when he gets detained?”  
“I don’t know. I was told desk duty for twelve months is inevitable with the way he keeps running.”  
“What if he turned himself in?”  
“They’d reduce the punishment, I presume. Why?”  
“I - Nevermind.”  
Slowly Jonathan’s hand moved back to yours and he gave you an earnest look. “What is it, love?”  
“It’s nothing to worry about.”  
“Really?”  
   
The doorbell rang interrupting you and room service arrived. You silently thanked room service for the first time. “Thank you Miss Y/L/N for visiting to the bar, we are giving you a free complimentary drink for your purchases.” Now you silently cursed them.  
Jonathan snapped his head around and saw you sink into the blanket further. “Y/N...”  
He sat beside you and suddenly you felt something click around your hand. You raised it and found your right arm cuffed to him. “Oh my god...”  
“I told you that you’d regret it.”  
“What if I need to pee?”  
“Well we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”  
   
You spent hours talking and trying to get out of this mess when you found your head on his chest. The situation with James was long gone but you knew that conversation would return again soon. You slowly raised your head, having the courage to look into his orbs and was left fascinated by this man. His beard had grown well and it tickled you from time to time. “Are you really going to keep us like this?”  
“Mhm.” He hummed clearly proud of himself.  
Jonathan moved in this time and kissed you with a fiery passion you hadn’t expected. You melted into the kiss and held onto him for dear life. “Let me take care of you.” Jonathan mumbled against your lips.  
Slowly you both pulled apart and his eyes darkened as he held your waist. Suddenly a thought came into your mind that made you burst into laughter.  
“What?”  
“I’m sorry but I just realised I literally can’t move. This surely isn’t going to work. Also were handcuffed, in case you haven’t noticed!” You snapped.  
“Well we can make something work. Doesn’t mean I have to deny you anything, darling.” He said lowly against your ear and you could feel the excitement emerge within.  
   
He did keep to his word. He made the next few hours about you, showering you with kisses as if he were your lover. He spent time getting to know you but the man was passionate, you can tell. Even when you told him that getting undressed probably wasn’t the greatest idea in your situation, he listened.  
   
Although the two of you underwent an intense make out session, it was clear that Jonathan was a passionate and careful man who knew how to treat his lover. He was gentle when you needed him to be, but rough in all the right places and he didn’t mind denying himself gratification because of it. All he wanted was to have you close to him and soon, you felt likewise. Being caught up with him was like second nature, the man was addictive and you just couldn’t get enough of those lips.  
   
By 3 am that morning, you needed to get something to drink and felt Jonathan turn the other direction in the bed. He slept shirtless this time while you were in a long t shirt. You were relieved that he let you go, the man may have been rough in many eyes but he was such a soft being, he really enjoyed a good old fashioned cuddle. You gave it a couple of minutes before you tried to slip off the bed when you felt a tug. You were still handcuffed to him!  
“Shit.” You quietly cursed.  
“Oh you really are a delinquent, love.” You heard Jonathan’s deep raspy voice say.  
“Jonathan please uncuff us I need to go to the toilet.” You groaned. Jonathan slowly turned around, hovering over you so he wouldn’t press his weight on you. “What happened to getting used to this.”  
“Jon, please. Or the bed is going to be wet - not the way you want it.” You snapped and even in the dark he could see your frustration.  
“I’m sorry love let me just grab the key.”  He managed to slip a kiss before he turned and grabbed the key setting you free.  
   
Quickly you rushed into the toilet and locked the door, sitting back for a while and taking a breath. A smirk appeared on your lips. This man was something else and if it weren’t for your injuries you would’ve let him ravage you. Why did everything have to fall apart just when things were going good? You hadn’t realised how long you’d been inside when you heard a knock.   
“Y/N? Is everything alright?” His velvety voice asked with concern, causing your stomach to do flips in anticipation. You hadn’t had such a feeling in a very long time.  
“Yeah I’m just - washing my face a minute.”  
“Are you sure you’re alright, love? Have I gone too far with tonight?”  
“No it’s fine. Tonight was totally fine.” You laughed, “I’ve got one arm remember?” 

You said as you opened the door, hobbling in when Jonathan helped you inside the bed. This time he seemed to be quietly asking permission to wrap his arm around you, which you of course allowed.  
   
***  
   
The morning you woke up early once again, left with your thoughts as you made your way to the front room and sat facing the window. You admired the view of the new city for a long while before you felt a hand graze your shoulder. Quickly, you turned to find a shirtless Jonathan look at you concerned. His hair was tousled and you could admire everything about this Casanova before you.  
“How’s your arm?”  
“Sore as fuck this morning but hey I think this new cast is becoming a bold fashion statement.”  
“Let me grab you the antibiotics. You’re due in a few minutes right?” He said quickly moving onto his feet, towards the kitchen. That man had a body on him, you were just glad it was you he wanted to admire, unless it was just a holiday feeling. Maybe it was because he hadn’t had the chance to see other women and you were in the way of that. There was the blonde he was seen in the photograph with, practically a model.  
   
“Penny for your thoughts?” Jonathan said interrupting your internal debate. He could see your concern and his eyebrows frowned as he held the medication and water in hand.  
“Ha! I’m only thinking of getting my cast tattooed. What do you think?”  
“Oh yes definitely go for it, maybe a little sleeve and add some rhinestones and you’ll be sorted, dear.” He chuckled, and you couldn’t help laughing with him. His input always managed to put you at ease. Then there was a silence and he could see the look of worry in your eyes as he sat next to you.  
“Talk to me, Y/N. What’s the matter? You’ve been off since last night. Maybe I feel like I owe you an apology.”   
“Oh no Jon, please don’t be sorry. My mind has just been all over the place. I just keep thinking if I didn’t come here, this whole mess wouldn’t have happened..”  
“You will never be in the way of anything. For a second I was about to have a heart attack with you saying that this was all one big mistake and you never want to see me again.”  
“No! Oh god no, but I feel like I have to go home.”  
Jonathan sighed,  “I’m not going to push you away, neither am I going to force you to stay here. If you want I can book us a flight back to London-“  
“Oh no! Jon this is your work-”  
“And you are my priority right now.”   
Priority. Look at you moving up the rankings. Goodbye supermodel blonde chick in the photographs! “Look I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, but I just think this injury and me being here is slowing you down.”  
He leaned back against the wall, the look of disappointment hit you hard. “Alright, I’ll give you the keys to the apartment, maybe talk my mate into bringing Duke back to keep you company.”  
“Thank you.” You took a long relieved sigh. “Just know you weren’t slowing me down I’m a slow and thorough man anyway.” He winked.  
“Go get ready for work.” You playfully kicked him away and let him run off. “I’ll take care of the transport home!”  
   
Jonathan left you alone once again as you searched for tickets back to London but somewhere in the search you fell asleep. After a couple of hours you felt a shift beside you. He came back early you thought, smirking to yourself.   
You slowly awoke from your slumber when the voice on the other side spoke.  
“Sleep well?”  
   
Wait. That was not his soft velvety voice that often soothes you as you usually wake up. This was different. You squeezed your eyes praying this did not belong to who you thought it would but your eyes did not deceive you. James sat next to you with glass in his hand and a bottle of whiskey.  
“The fuck are you doing here?”  
“Before we start with the profanity, I wondered if you would like a drink.”  
You quickly moved away from him and picked up your crutch from the floor. “No! Fuck no! Not from you! Haven’t you done enough?” You groaned,  
“Enough? There’s no such thing as enough with me.”  
You scowled at the man who smirked proudly before you, except his enjoyment faltered when he realised you weren’t into his sense of humour. Not anymore. “Look, Y/N I didn’t get the chance to apologise.”  
“You don’t need the chance to apologise because you’re James Bond. Let’s keep it that way, breaking shit is what you do for a living mate, I don’t know what else you can damage after people’s bones and lives.”  
“I’m trying to apologise Y/N.” He finally said after a short silence.  
“You’re not doing a great job so far.” You rolled your eyes and huffed, “James, don’t make me beg. For the love of God, just get out.”  
“No you have to hear me out.” He protested, moving to sit on the coffee table so he was completely in front of you. “ I’m sorry for everything that’s happened. I’m sorry what I did then and for what I’m about to do now.”  
“What do you mean-“ Before you answered everything turned black.  
   
***

Bang! The constant bumping noises rose you from your rough blackout and now you found yourself inside the back of a Land Rover, driving the snowy, mountainous roads of Switzerland with no idea where you were headed.   
   
“What the fuck, what did you do to me asshole?” Your neck and shoulders ached incredibly as you heaved your way to the door.  
“That’s enough of the pet names for now, very unflattering.”  
“Answer the bloody question.” You snapped.  
“That free whiskey you were downing before I got there, you know from the room service? I spiked it with some sleeping pills - only a little dose.”  
“What the hell! That was not a small dose! I could’ve died you fucking maniac!” You screamed kicking the back of James’ seat.   
“I panicked! You haven’t answered my phone calls ever since you left the flat and this is the only way I can talk to you without you being able to call the police!”  
“When I’m done here I’m going to kill you! Broken arms, legs or not!”   
“You don’t want to be kicking my seat, we’re driving on a mountain, that’s very unsafe.” He reprimanded suddenly.  
“Oh my god. I’m going to die, I am going to die because my old flatmate is a goddamn sociopath that wants to kill me!”  
“Sociopath? That’s rich coming from you!” Bond scoffed as he tried to focus on the road.  
“What is that supposed to mean?”  
“It means what it means, there’s no underlying message for christ’s sake! If anyone is a sociopath, it’s you! You hate people, you live off their miseries, you get some form of enjoyment in doing things that can get anyone killed!”  
“Isn’t that your job though?”That retort alone made you give an internal high five to yourself.  
“Hey, you’re not innocent either in this mess! You broke my nose when you had that fight with-”  
“Don’t you dare mention her name, don’t you dare-“  
“Madeleine!”  
“Oh my god you’re bringing her up again! Somehow she manages to weasel her way into this without even being here! That is insane! Simply one of the million reasons I wanted to get away from you and that crazy girlfriend of yours. I don’t want a memory of you being all over Dr Duck inside your flat!”  
“You won’t have to remember it because we’re not together anymore!”  
   
There was a silence in the car that followed.

“Who’s the man you’ve been on this holiday with then?”  
Harsh laughter erupted from you, “Why would I tell you shit?”  
“Maybe because he’s been running after me for a while and I feel like I have a right to know what the fuck I’m headed into Y/N. I’m on my own ! No one is here to help me, not even Q or Tanner or Moneypenny, it’s just me and I’m tired of running!”  
You were quiet for a moment, “Still have no clue what you’re talking about.”  
“I can’t believe this! I’m telling you I’m in some deep shit and you can’t even help a friend out?”  
“Ah you see that’s where you’re wrong because we’re not friends. I was homeless because of the shit you pulled that left me miserable. What do I do when I’m happier? Try and go on holiday, but what happens? I have been miserable the entire time I’ve been here because somehow you weasel your way back into my life and I’ve broken my arm and leg because of it. Everything you go near James? Becomes damaged goods. If you think I’m helping you, then you can fuck off.”

James was silent for a while, and you had to say your final piece. “So turn this car around and take me back.”After five minutes he said, “No can do.” He pulled up at the top of one of the mountains where you were parked in front of a small cabin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...This has all turned into utter chaos! The classic insults are back between Bond and the reader but not in the way he wants it. What does James have planned and how will Jonathan take the reader's disappearance? Feel free to leave a comment and a kudos, it's much appreciated!


	13. "Let's make a deal..."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plot: At the cabin, James’ insufferable antics are on the rise again in your presence. How will you be able to cope?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the Kudos! I'm literally so grateful for them and the wonderful comments!  
> AN: Again, Jonathan is the man of your choosing! So now I don’t know what the hell happened to the plot...it’s gone all over the place. I’m really sorry! I hope you enjoy this! I have to say, I know very little about chemical weapons, although I have done enough research to know the potential and side effects! My job is only to make the reader look intelligent as hell. I think things are starting to look like they're heading somewhere but then again, this chapter again is absolute whack so I'm sorry for that too!

[6 months ago]

“Y/N, you need to listen to me, I’m trying to ask you something.” James huffed, standing beside the table, yet you still were focused on the work before you. The dining table was scattered as usual with your laboratory kit, along with a few bags and samples that raised eyebrows for James. Still, you refused to answer, immersed in testing samples. “You’ve been glued to the bloody desk for hours! The least you can do is acknowledge my presence.” Suddenly, James’ phone buzzed interrupting his rant. “You are joking. Right, I’m going to work, if you’re still here I’m burning the table. Before you say anything, I don’t care how explosive that can be.”  
“Are you going to stop by the Chinese on your way back?” You nonchalantly retorted.  
James stopped in his tracks and turned to you, baffled. This was the first time you’ve spoken to him all day, and you’ve seen him since nine that morning - the time was now two o’clock!  
“What? It’s your turn to pay.” You said, finally lifting your eyes from the table to him. He simply turned around and slammed the door shut.

Hours flew by that day and when he returned, he expected to see you impaled to the desk, however he found quite the opposite. As James stepped through the door with his hands filled with takeaway, only to face the eerie sound of silence from his footsteps into the living room. “Y/N?” He called. “I got the sweet and sour chicken and the owner gave me dumplings for free saying they were on the house for you. Is there something I should know?”  
Today had been a long day and the only thing on his mind now was to tolerate your antics for a couple of hours and watch television to at least stop the attitude you had given him all day. James dropped the takeaway at the table along with his keys and threw his jacket on the couch, absentmindedly making his way towards your room. He knocked once, yet there was no answer. “Y/N, come on, get out, I’m going to start without you if you waste any more time in there.”

No answer. James looked at the door and noticed it was left slightly ajar. He had never stepped into your room long enough to notice what was inside it. Every time you and James hung out it was in his room or in the living room, so when he took a breath and pushed the door open, he was surprised to see the room filled with film posters and photographs beneath the fairly lights. This room had changed since he last stepped inside it, the place was much cosier than his room. Filled with cushions and pillows that matched the soft duvet and unlike the dining table you often left clustered, this was actually a tidy room. It brought a lively side to you that he personally hadn’t expected. He looked at all the photographs on the wall. He finally stopped tat a polaroid you and Q together smiling in a café. The two of you were laughing together, much younger than you were now - it was odd seeing the two of you like this. Surrounded by other photographs of you at different places with friends and family - you never spoke about your family to James, which surprised him.

It was then you stepped into the room, without noting James’ presence, just until you were about to take off your towel after a long shower.  
“Why are you in my room?” That voice caught him off guard.  
He turned around, eyes widening when he saw you almost in your naked form. You held that towel with all your might for protection. “Shit. I was trying to call you but you wouldn’t answer.”  
“So that’s the reason your standing inside my room, rather than take a quick glance and leave then?” You retorted.  
James had been with many women and seen them in all their glory, yet there was something different about you being in the room like this, was it a new form of attraction? Surely it couldn’t be. He most certainly couldn’t feel that way about you. “Well - uh -” He stammered, now you caught him off guard. What was supposed to be a quick glance in the room became the discovery of a different person and he found himself wanting to know more. There had to be a distraction, “That’s you and Q. Why would there be a photograph of-”  
“Get out.” You finally snapped, annoyed by his presence. There were times you could tolerate James and his constant interrogations, however your fuse ran short with his man specifically at the time. You were in a towel, for Christ's sake!  
“Right.” He nodded, “You sure you don’t me to-”  
“No. I don’t want you to do anything else. Just. Get. Out.”

The two of you sat at the table, you were happily eating your chow mien, when you saw James observing you quietly. Eventually he uttered, “So why is there a photograph of you and Q inside your room?”  
“Why were you inside my room?”  
“I already told you the answer to that!” He huffed.  
“Then you don’t need an answer to my question.” Your tone was always cold, but he could tell this time you were slightly frustrated with his sudden appearance. “How would you feel if I walked in on you naked?”  
“You’ve already seen me naked. Twice.” He smirked proudly.  
“You said you were leaving for work on both those occasions! I thought you had already left!”  
“Mhm. Right. Keep telling yourself that. You should not walk in one someone, especially your flatmate.”  
“I pity the woman you next end up with. You are literally going to drive her up the wall, just for being an absolute prick." “Really? Well I pity the man who thinks he is going to even last a minute in a relationship with someone like you.”  
That caught you off guard and as James knew, your temper with him was short today. “What is that supposed to mean?”  
“Nothing. Nothing. Want more drink?” He said, holding up the bottle of wine.

You didn’t care for it, though. Especially not to be around him. “I do not need this today.” So you stood up and made your way to the sofa, avoiding any means to talk to him. Only on this day, he had to get on your last nerves. Of all days, he chose that day.

[Present Date]

“Come on, it’s not as bad as you think.”  
“You’re basically kidnapping me.”

Four hours ago, you were in the comfort of your hotel, soaking up the warmth and watching some television. Now you find yourself in the middle of nowhere on a mountain, in a small cabin, with the man you wanted to avoid at all costs. He sat across you on the dining table, a glass between you.  
“At least have a drink.” He gestured to the glass of water and pushed it towards you. Though you pushed yourself back. “I’d rather not know when I’m being poisoned.” You spat back.  
“Come on Y/N, you know I wouldn’t do that to you.”  
Deep breaths. Just take deep breaths. Don’t lose your cool. As you did so, all you could do was raise an eyebrow at him. “Alright. Technically I didn’t poison you, I spiked your drink. Huge difference.”  
“Still would’ve had the same outcome. I could’ve died.”  
“Must we still talk about that?”  
“It was literally a few hours ago!”  
“That’s old news, we should talk about other things. Stop dwelling on the past.” He muttered as he made his way to the kitchen. “You’ll die of dehydration if you don’t drink that water.”  
“Well then I guess my blood is on your hands then.” You shrugged.  
“Nice. He sighed and left the room for a short amount of time, leaving you to sit alone. What on Earth did you do to deserve to get into this mess? All you did was mind your own business after the Madeline incident but trouble just seems to always find you...and then there was Jonathan, who had no idea where you were or what you were doing. It made you smile to imagine that he would’ve thought this was another one of your bar trips. Then it hit. It’s not one of those.

James returned with a gun in hand. At this point, you weren’t even frightened. More so, annoyed that you got into this mess in the first place. “For goodness sake, why am I here? I don’t have any value to anyone, not even to you and it’s blatantly obvious you didn’t come to apologise.”  
James pushes the gun into his jacket pocket and sat down. “I did come to apologise though. This mess shouldn’t have happened in the first place and I thought maybe you could help me out.”  
“Nope.” You quickly retorted. “A few hours ago I was booking a flight back to London. Now I’m sure for a fact the police are going to be searching for me and whoever is after you will be relentless in their search. I don’t want to help you and I won’t.”  
James sighed, your hard headed attitude was going to be the death of him. He hadn’t missed this at all in your absence, or did he? “What is it going to take? I’ll do anything.”  
“If I tell you will you never bother to see me again, right?”  
“You make that sound like it’s a bad thing.” He chuckled. “Wait - never?” He finally realised what you had said and frowned slightly, sinking into his seat.  
“Never. I don’t want to see you again. You know at one point, I felt bad for losing my shit back at the flat but now you made it clear to me, after spiking my drink and almost killing me twice in the space of a week, that I should never see you again.”  
Bond was silent for a few minutes, studying whether you were serious or not. However, it was clear to him that this wasn’t a joke. “Alright.”  
“Also I need one more thing.”  
“What?”  
“You book my flight back to London and drive me to the airport.”  
“Hang on that is two things.” He quickly pointed out.  
“Do you want me to tell you what’s going on or not?”  
“Fine.” He said. Expecting you to answer, he glared at you. The silence in the room was nerving, although you clearly weren’t bothered by it. This was another day ruined by James’ antics and you weren’t willing to let him have the last laugh.  
“What?” You finally snapped, folding your arm over the injured one.  
“This is the part where you’re meant to tell me what the hell is happening.”  
“Oh no you’re booking my flight first, I don’t trust you.”  
“You have got to be kidding me.”  
“You think I’m saying a single word, you’re out of your fucking mind.” The look in your eyes was one of the few times that James found himself suddenly nerved with your anger. “There’s no reception here! How is this meant to work?”  
“You brought me up here. Come up with something.”  
It took over an hour and you made sure you were present for this. Once he booked the flight before you, the two of you were facing each other again. “Right I did my part, now you do yours.”  
“You’re basically getting arrested.”  
“What?”  
“Yeah, you’re getting arrested. Can I go now?” You really wanted no part of this, and you couldn’t help for your mind to wander back to Jonathan now and again.  
But James managed to completely stop those thoughts. “No, hang on! Explain this.”  
“I don’t work for the MI6 how the hell am I supposed to know what’s actually happening!”  
Bond still didn’t answer.  
“Fine. Something about you putting people in danger and there’s someone after you who’s like a high ranking officer. That sort of thing.” You eventually shrugged.  
“How do you know that?”  
“I don’t. Just think it sounds legit.”  
“Y/N, for crying out loud!” His annoyance had no effect on you. It was remarkable. “Can you just help me out here?”  
“What do you want me to do? I’m not involved in anything you do! It’s not my fault you’re getting desk duty!”  
“Desk duty?”  
“That’s what Q said. I don’t really know enough to care.”

James squeezed his lips as he moved his fingers along the wooden surface of the table. There was clearly something on his mind but now, the need to hold back had disappeared. “There’s a man you’ve been here with. He was lurking in the casino I went to a couple of nights ago with this very attractive young blonde. Seen him with her a good few times now in public places. Obviously you’re not there, you’re inside a hotel trying to recover. He’s out there having a social life with another woman, clearly he’s smitten by her. Do you know he does this behind your back? Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe you don’t care. You are stone cold after all.” Of course you didn’t. You couldn’t care. Not about this man, how could you? Now wasn’t the time to let James win.  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about and quite frankly, I remember telling you I can maintain a friendship with the opposite sex without the need for intimacy to be involved. So in light words, what are you playing at?”  
“Nothing. I just assumed you had a thing for him, that’s all. I mean you agreed to come to Geneva with him for a holiday. What else could that mean?”  
“Well it means nothing, alright? I needed to get away and you couldn’t let me do that. For me to go on holiday with a friend of course would be funny with you as you assume there’s something more. There’s always something more with you. But I’m telling you there’s nothing alright. There never has been to begin with. So, you know what? Whatever you’ve done to piss off your branch, that’s entirely up to you to sort out and I’m going to give you an honest piece of advice. There’s two things you can do from here on out. You can either go back to London, preferably on a separate flight and hand yourself in, or do what you have to do and then get the hell out of here. Clearly running about isn’t doing you any favours. With the other branch coming to arrest you for derailing an operation and placing lives in danger, it’s pissing off a lot of people James. Whatever it is, that’s your problem but as long as I’m not the picture, this is the best it’s going to get.”

James left you once again to sit alone. Once you could see he was gone, you finally took a breath and looked down at your hands. This was one large mess you needed to clean yourself from. Maybe you needed to move out of London. Never to see James or Jonathan again. Break all ties with them and divorce Q while you were at it to split from the worst holy trinity to exist. You thought the man was going to just leave you alone when ten minutes later he came back with a stack of papers and dropped them in front of you.  
“A little over a week ago an arms dealer in Dimitri Koslov came to Geneva to visit one Robert Longwell.” He said dropping photographs on the table, “This man is known for funding some of the worst weapons in the world, nuclear bombs to VX to Add to dictionary toxins, these are chemicals and weapons of war. He’s been storing them in a base here, somewhere fifty miles from Tripoli. Obviously chemicals and politics isn’t my forte but it’s clear he’s storing for something huge, for something that will establish inevitable dominance. What’s the damage we’re talking here?”  
You moved the papers in front of you and read through the transactions, “On a higher level, this is the receipt for mass destruction. This stuff will wipe out populations.”  
“But what’s the damage to an individual?”  
“Well, when the toxins for VX are inhaled it breaks down the body. If made contact with it can penetrate the skin quickly and cause paralysis, lung collapse, all sorts of nasty shit. It’s the most potent of all gases. Meanwhile Novichok is very rare, it works like any other nerve agent except it’s considered much more dangerous, we’re talking about something the Soviets would use as a less sophisticated but much more deadly poison. Why is - why is he buying this?”  
“I don’t know but he’s funding someone and people are going to die like flies if this man manages to put his weapons to use. I’ve been following him all over Geneva, trying to figure out if there’s a way I can get on the inside. The moment Mallory heard of this, he pulled me from the operation.”  
You raised your eyebrows, staring at the photographs of Robert Longwell and Dimitri Koslov. The Russian had receding hair, while the British gentleman was short, with blonde and grey hair. “Isn’t there anything else you can do to stop this from happening?”  
“I don’t know. It seems that Longwell has something planned but I’m restricted with my knowledge of chemical weapons. Now with this other bloody branch trying to arrest me, I can’t do a single thing.” He groaned, pulling back from the photographs. The man paced back and forth constantly, seemingly trying to think.  
“Maybe I can help.” You really didn’t want the words to come out of your mouth but from the look of the papers, you could not live with knowing another case of Vietnam or a massacre was at your hands. “Not for you, but for the sake of the people who are in danger and I would have to be back in London to do this. I can’t be out here.”  
“Really? You don’t want to be out on the field?”  
“I want no part of this then.” You dropped the photographs with ease and pulled back. This was not what he wanted, he could not let you, the expert leave him to fight this battle alone.  
“No! I mean, you can go back to London.”  
“I can help guide you through this mission, give you the information you need about this man or anything else and when it’s over we don’t contact each other again.”  
"Never again, I understand." He actually listened to you! Even placing his hands up in to show he was listening. James must've been truly desperate. “We don’t have much time, Longwell leaves the country tomorrow morning.”  
“Well you best drive me to the airport now if you’re going to get on the inside tonight. Just know that when shit goes down, I will have no part in the consequences.”  
“Understood. I will take full responsibility for everything.”

Alas, it was time to put your differences aside for a better cause. How long you two would last, however, was the bigger problem. In your mind, you knew it wouldn't be so long with a man like James.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally the duo are working together again! It's about time they put their differences aside, but again we still have characters that are yet to get in the way of their 'relationship.' What is it about that day in particular that had the reader so snappy? So many questions! No Jonathan today, sadly but he'll be back soon and the plot will keep spinning! I really hope you've enjoyed this chapter! I'll try to post another chapter soon, all comments are much appreciated. :)


	14. "Not my boyfriend..."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you return to the hotel, you finally have had enough of everything going wrong, No thanks to James...or someone else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Happy New Year all! I know it has been such a long time since the last chapter but as a treat I have released this chapter and the next chapter will be released in the coming week. Again, Jonathan is the man of your choosing! So now I don’t know what the hell happened to the plot...it’s gone all over the place. There are also some plot holes that will be solved soon trust me. I’m really sorry! I hope you enjoy this!

The two of you sat in the car for what seemed like hours on your way back to the hotel. A plan was devised after over two hours of disagreement in terms of how you were to retrieve your belongings. To avoid both of you getting caught into trouble, it was best that you returned to the hotel, picked up your bags quick enough for Jonathan to barely have the chance to question your flight and leave swiftly. If you told him your tickets were already booked for the night, he had no choice but to let you leave. As guilty as you felt for having to leave this man, it was probably for the best. You were inside the car with the man both he and his branch were after. This was not going to end well if he even heard that you were in cahoots with James after being told the real story behind his manic behaviour. So there you sat in silence, at the back of the car because James didn’t trust you enough to sit next to him after your reaction to the incident that led you to him in the first place.

The awkward silence that drifted between you two was potentially the best thing to happen for the time being. One word from James’ mouth and you wouldn’t know how to react. If only things had remained this way the entire journey.  
“So, where you're staying, guess it’s more comfortable than my flat?”  
“Let’s cut the small talk shit James. We’re beyond that. What do you want?” You hissed. Now that was one reaction you were no stranger to whenever James had meandered around a certain topic.  
“You never explained to me why you still had that photo of you and Q inside your room? Or why you were extra snappy that day.”  
“Oh for crying out loud.” You rolled your eyes and kicked the back of his seat with your good foot. “I don’t have to explain myself to you.”  
“I’m waiting.”  
“Look it was a bad day, you pissed me off by going into my room and invading my privacy!”  
“Don’t you get tired? Of being angry?” James eventually retorted, “It’s boring for me.”  
“You’re one to talk. You didn’t explain why you and Madeleine aren’t together but I can take a good guess and you don’t even have to explain yourself to me.”  
“Now that’s not fair. You can’t go around making assumptions.”  
“She was too clingy, got in the way of your work.” You were nonchalant with your statement, which somehow wound James up even more than intended. “You started running off more often, leaving her behind and she soon flipped. Started bringing me into the argument. Packed her bags, but boy were you glad she was gone.”  
James was silent for a brief moment, pondering on how true your statement had been. “Stop trying to dodge my question. This is not about me.”  
“I’ll give you something to dodge in a minute if you don’t keep quiet.” Your threat made his eyes widen immediately.

Both of you arrived at the hotel by 11.35 pm. Dozens of people rushed inside in smart dressed clothing, predominantly much older middle class, potentially upper class people, showing off their fur coats and three piece suits, only to be flashed at a black tie event. You weren’t aware that things occurred within the hotel until you saw a sign outside the door. ‘Phantom of the Opera’ was to be played tonight, which explained why people arrived in flocks. You never realised how expensive this hotel was, something only members of the bourgeoisie could afford, but then you took a self tour to the bar. The price of a bottle of rosé costing just as much as a full week’s worth of pay for you.  
“So, remember what we discussed.” James stated as he pressed the handbrake. He turned to you, who had remained ever so nonchalant with your reactions towards.  
“I know, I know. Jesus Christ, you don’t have to talk to me like I’m a child.”  
“Well, I was just checking in - and you’ll be alright with all of this, right? This has to be done.”  
“Why would you check in if I’m alright? You don’t care.”  
“Well, I mean you two are - he’s your-”  
“He’s not my boyfriend.” You snapped.  
“I was going to say you’ve taken a great liking into him. Lover is a bit of an overstatement with you in such a short period of time.” The cheek of the snarky man in front of you tested your patience, but then again when had he not done that. This only heightened now that you were on awful terms..”  
“Look I’ll be fine. What he is to me shouldn’t be a concern to you, let me get this done so I can get back to London.”   
“Maybe you being cold won’t make this so hard after all.” He muttered as you stepped outside of the car. Just in the distance, he could see you suddenly give a middle finger as you entered the building.

The journey to your room seemed longer for some reason. It felt as though you were heading into unknown territory at this point. So many times you wandered around the building with Jonathan, or snuck away into the bar to stop yourself from watching countdown and now here you were about to apparently stick your neck out for the man who ruined your trip. Lord knows what you were going to do once this was over.  
As you stepped into the room, you noticed the lean figure that belonged to Jonathan on the phone pacing back and forth. “Listen I don’t care that I’m behind, I know that man is out there making her life a living hell up here and that was not what was supposed to happen! Of course I’m not raising my voice at you...yes Ma’am. I understand that, five days? That should be enough time-” He stopped in his tracks when he finally turned to you. His eyes filled with agitation and worry finally turning into concern with a spark of a relief, something you found difficult to see. “Christ...I’m going to have to call you back Ma’am.”

 

He strode towards you in three quick steps and placed his hand on your uninjured arm, “Gosh, Y/N, where have you been? I was worried sick. One minute you were here, the next you were gone.”  
“I went to check out what was going on downstairs, they have the whole Phantom of the Opera thing going on right now so I was fascinated. You know what? I should go to my room.” Your ability to navigate around Jonathan, especially when he found himself in concern was impeccable, at times. Yet this man could still read you like a book from afar. That you didn’t like. You didn’t want to be read. You didn’t want to be looked at or analysed as though you were a project or a piece of conflicting poetry, written for the purpose of being criticised piece by piece. No. You wanted to go about your day remaining unnoticed. But Jonathan couldn’t do that, not even if it was your last dying wish. He cared too much and that itself you read from him.  
“Hold on. I can’t let you get off that lightly. There are so many things wrong with what you’ve just asked - wait what’s that on the side of your head? Y/N?” He turned your cheek to the side noticing a bruise on the side of your head.   
Shit. You forgot you hit your head really hard on the edge of the couch at one point, probably when Bond drugged you earlier that afternoon. “Y/N?” He asked once again to grasp your attention.

Quickly you moved your head from his palm, patience with the man and his questions finally gone. “Get off me. You don’t need to be worried, I’m a grown woman. You’re not my boyfriend so why should it matter that I went for a walk.”  
“I never said I was-” His eyes widened to the sudden outburst from your temper. He hadn’t expected to be on the receiving end of it.  
“It gets real claustrophobic in here you know? When you’re out there and I’m stuck in here because of these fucking injures! And with you babying me making it look like I can’t even fend for myself!”  
“Y/N, I’m not going to fight you. I think you should get a drink and calm down-” He stated calmly, but you could see his jaw clenching. Conflicted couldn’t even describe the way is eyebrows arched trying to digest what was happening before him.  
“Calm down? Who are you to tell me to calm down? Talking to me as if I’m a child again! If I hadn’t agreed to going here with you or even stayed with you none of this shit would have happened in the first place! My arm would be fine and I’d be back in London-”  
“What? Where is this all coming from? Back in London homeless? Because of that prick who left you living moving from place to place? At least I give a damn about how you are and how you feel-” He finally hissed.  
“Right! Give a damn! Look who’s talking!” Your harsh laugh could only build the walls you used as a guard even higher. Seeing this man confused or infuriated was the least of your concerns. “When did you become so soft? This isn’t about feelings, this is about you trying to get me in your bed.” You quickly retorted.  
“Don’t say that Y/N…” You could hear the hurt and anger in his voice.  
“You know it is! Letting me stay in your house, booking the flight here, everything. Just because you weren’t getting some from that blonde girl you were with it doesn’t mean I get to be your side chick or your bed warmer.”  
“What? Who are you talking about?” You refused to answer. “Is this truly what you think of me?” The hurt in his eyes you couldn’t see in your outrage. Only words such as those coming from you were the ones that pierced like shards of glass going through him. He tried to figure out what he had done wrong to deserve this, piece the puzzle together but his mind raced with too many thoughts. Until he noticed a pattern.  
“Is this about him? Is this James?” He finally gulped.  
“Of course it’s not! Not everything has to be because of someone other than yourself! All of you have played around enough with the friendship card and quite frankly I knew it was bullshit all along. James, Q, even you. I can spot a man with the need to be in someone’s pants in a heartbeat.”  
The tension was thick between you two as you stood in silence. An unbearable sense of rage seething from you only having made it worse, until Jonathan finally said with a wavering voice. “Do you ever believe that anyone would ever do anything nice for you without wanting anything in return?”  
“That’s where you’re wrong. There is always something.”  
“Look, Y/N it has never been about that I have never wanted anything from you! I thought we were friends!” Where are you going?” He rushed quickly following you.  
“I’ve booked a flight back to London. I’m out of here.” Before he knew it, you already had your suitcase in hand and you were ready to leave.  
“I can’t let you leave until you explain to me the meaning of all of this!.” The man stood in the way of the door but was caught off guard with the sudden strength you unleashed when pushing him away.  
“Don’t you dare touch me. I will punch you in the throat if you even try.”

There you left the man in utter disbelief. Still trying to process what happened.

As you left the room, nothing else mattered around the building. The buzzing atmosphere as people rushed into the concert hall, the people working around the hotel, couples strolling around together or sat that the restaurant soaking in the ambience. But all you saw was grey. There was no ambience, just perpetual numbness to everything.

Only James’ voice suddenly brought you back to reality. “Take it that went well.” He asked.  
“Just drive the car, I don’t want to talk about this.” You said. The emptiness clearly visible from a mile away. You stopped yourself from even letting out a sigh to show anything to the man in front as you stared out the window. The things you did for James.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh, the reader has built up the guard once more. And there we go! The next instalment to the Bond's new flatmate series! I know it has been a long time coming and this might not be the best chapter produced but it's leading somewhere, I promise! Please leave a kudos if you want more and a comment, those are much appreciated and we will be finding out more about these certain plot holes in the next coming chapters!


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